The Death Game
by WebofSpideyguy7245698
Summary: Thousands are trapped in a video game, not everyone will make it out. Join Kirito and friends as they try to conquer the one hundredth floor, which would clear the game and as they ultimately try to keep each other alive. My adaptation of SAO, written the way I would have told the story. Rated T for Mild Language and Violence.
1. Chapter 1: The World of Swords

The Death Game

Chapter 1: The World of Swords

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to the first chapter of my first Sword Art Online Fanfiction!

* I don't usually write fanfiction based off of Anime, the only other fanfiction based off of Anime that I wrote was based off of Corpse Party, a game/manga franchise created by Team Gris Gris. That story really needs some work done, in terms of grammar and paragraphing, so I wouldn't look into it. But anyway, that's not the point.

* I haven't been watching Sword Art Online for all that long, but I've been enjoying it more than any other Anime that I've ever watched. So, I had an idea for how I would tell the story of Sword Art Online, so I decided to give it a shot.

* So, if you've watched the Anime, basically nothing changes in this chapter, which is an adaptation of episode one. That being said, you should easily know what's going on. It's only at the end of this chapter, that I start to tell the story the way I would have told it. So, most of, if not the entire story will be from Kirito's point of view, just so you know. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

 _Kirito_

My name is Kazuto Kirigaya. But my friends call me Kirito. So, just call me Kirito. And where is this you may ask? Welcome to the world of Sword Art Online. Aincrad, one hundred floors of punishment and torment. Thousands upon thousands of players were trapped in Sword Art Online, a virtual reality game.

Sword Art Online and the NerveGear, the Virtual Reality interface required to play SAO were both created by Akihiko Kayaba, who also developed the Cardinal System, a sort of security system for SAO. As many as four thousand players died within Aincrad, the giant floating castle that SAO took place in.

So, this is the entire story of SAO, from start to finish. I'm going to tell you the entire story of how I, Kazuto Kirigaya, (almost single-handedly) beat SAO and freed the remaining players from their torment. But why am I doing this you may ask? I'm doing this to share my experience in the world of SAO with you. Because no matter what you think, when you find yourself playing a Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game, _nothing_ is what it seems.

…

Before I get in to detail about the worst, as well as the best two years of my life, let me just describe a few things about myself and the circumstances, as well as some history behind the nightmare that was Sword Art Online. You may notice as I tell my story that I will switch back and forth from calling Sword Art Online by its full name or by its acronym: SAO. Usually I'll call it by its full name if I haven't referenced it in a while.

Okay, so my real name is Kazuto Kirigaya and my Avatar's name is Kirito. Seeing as players rarely call each other by their real names, you'll find that I will usually refer to myself as Kirito and that's what people will call me. I have black hair and brown eyes, and if it matters, I'm 172 cm tall. I have the average body type for a guy my age, I guess?

My birthday is October 7th, 2008 and I'm fourteen years old. My birth name was Kazuto Narusaka. I was adopted a year after I was born, by my aunt and uncle, after my birth parents died in an accident. When I was ten years old, I discovered that I was adopted and had ever since been distancing myself from my little sister Suguha, who is obviously my cousin, but she doesn't know that.

She still believes that we're brother and sister. I was originally forced to train with Suguha in the neighborhood kendo dojo, but after a couple years of training, I quit because I had gained interest in computers, do to my aunt being an editor for a computer systems magazine. That's what started me on my path to form a passion for Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (VRMMORPGs for short).

A while back, I was lucky enough to be one of the few thousand players that got to beta test SAO. And at one o'clock on November 6th, the game launched for the public. And that's how the nightmare began. Anyway, SAO was created and developed Akihiko Kayaba, the same guy who created the NerveGear. You could also say that he's the guy who caused this whole mess. He trapped all of the players, ten thousand of us started, in SAO for two years. And not all of us made it out.

I'm just glad I wasn't alone the whole time. I had friends, acquaintances to help me along the way. There's Asuna, first off. Asuna and I had a very interesting relationship. We hated each other, yet we liked each other at the same time. I guess you could say that we were best frenemies? There's Klein, the guy I first interacted with the most and also the guy I traveled with the most, besides Asuna and Sachi, more on her later.

There's Lisbeth, a local blacksmith and sword maker who occasionally provides me with gear. Silica, a female player that Sachi and I helped out. And next, there's Yui. She was a special case. Yui was an NPC type, I think that's the best way I could put it. And that brings us to Agil. Agil had a nice set-up; his own shop in the game. Agil was a really nice, I don't think he would hurt a fly. Or at least let me put it this way: I don't think he'd intentionally kill another player.

I think if he could avoid killing other players, that he would. Well, that's pretty much all the pre-story details that I can bother to tell you. So, without anything else on my mind, our story begins.

 _November 6_ _th_ _, 2022 – First Floor: Town of Beginnings_

"Link start!" I had said as I laid on my bed, with my NerveGear on my head.

I had bypassed all the menus that came before Sword Art Online started. I set the language to Japanese, I put in my account information to log in, you know, all that good stuff. Before I knew it, I found myself standing in a garden area, the walls and floor made up of stone brick, controlling my Avatar. All the players that ever play a VR game like SAO would create their own Avatar before playing for the first time. My Avatar had longer black hair than I had in real life and I was a bit taller, I think.

I blinked several times as I got used to being an Avatar again. I looked down at my body and breathed. Eventually I made a fist and smiled.

"Hello, world!" I said. "I'm back!"

All around me, more players began logging into SAO. I had begun running through the streets of the Town of Beginnings, the first level in Aincrad where all players started. I was eager to begin playing the game again, the private beta still fresh in my mind. That's when I heard a voice calling from behind me.

"Hey, bro!" a male voice called. "Wait up!"

A look of surprise and confusion came onto my face as I stopped in my tracks. A player's Avatar wearing brown pants, a white shirt with brown armor pieces and red hair with a bandanna tied around his forehead stopped running once he got to me, taking a second to catch his breath.

"What's up?" I asked.

He continued panting before he spoke.

"You act like you know your way around here." He said. "You were in the beta test, weren't you?"

I don't know why, but I acted surprised when he said that.

"Uh, yeah." I said.

"Cool!" he said as he stood up straight. "Today's my first day. So, could you give me some tips on the lower floors?"

He walked up to me and put his hand on my shoulder as he spoke.

"Uh, I don't know if…" I tried to speak, but he didn't let me finish.

"Oh, please, I'm begging you!" he said as he put his hands together, before smiling at me. "Look, my name's Klein. Good to meet you!"

Eventually I smiled and stood up a little straighter.

"Alright, I'm Kirito." I said, introducing myself.

 _Sometime Later – First Floor: Town of Beginnings: West Field_

I watched as Klein got pushed backwards by one of the boars and fell onto his back, as I tried showing him the ropes.

"Right in the nuts…" he whimpered as he laid on the ground, holding the named spot.

"Oh, come on. Seriously?" I asked as I fought the urge to roll my eyes. "You can't feel any pain."

Suddenly, Klein stopped rolling around in the grass.

"Oh, yeah. You're right." He said. "Sorry, habit."

"Remember what I said?" I asked as he got up from the ground. "The first move is the most important."

He sighed.

"Yeah, that's easy for you to say!" he replied. "They won't stand still!"

I bent down to pick up pebble that sat in the field.

"If you do your initial motion right and activate a sword skill at the right time," I spoke, getting into a stance as I did so.

I threw the pebble and it hit the boar on its hind quarters.

"The system guarantees that you'll always hit your target." I finished my sentence.

"Initial motion." Klein whispered to himself, as he raised his sword.

"Here's an easier way to look at it." I said, raising my sword as the boar charged at me.

I sidestepped as the boar got close to me and he missed me entirely. He charged me again and this time I used my sword to block his tusks.

"Right after you start your move, wait a little bit and when you feel the skill start to activate," I spoke, continuing to block the pig bull. "Drive it home!"

"Drive it home." Klein whispered to himself, not moving from where he was.

Eventually he took his stance and he put his sword on his shoulder, so the blade was pointing away from him. Seeing that, I redirected the boar into his direction. Klein got ready and when the time was right, actually struck the boar. And after that, the boar exploded into thousands of glittering pieces, just as everything in the game would do upon death. Klein looked back behind him, to see that he had killed the boar and a smile appeared on his face.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed in an excited tone.

I stood there with a smile on my face.

"Congratulations." I said as I stepped towards him.

He chuckled as we high fived one another.

"That was nice." I said as I sheathed my sword. "But that boar's about as weak as slimes in other games are."

The happy look on Klein's face disappeared.

"Holy crap, you've got to be kidding!" he said. "I thought that thing was a mid-level boss!"

"Yeah, as if." I scoffed as a couple more boars spawned not too far away from us.

"Whoa!" Klein said as he drew his sword.

"Addictive, isn't it?" I asked.

"I'll say!" he said, before jabbing his sword forward. "So, these skills, there's a ton of them, like blacksmithing and stuff, right?"

"Uh-huh." I said. "I've heard that the game has an unlimited number of them. All except for magic, though."

"An RPG without magic? That's a pretty bold decision, man!" he said as he continued practicing with his sword.

He started chuckling with excitement as he stopped training.

"So, what do you think?" I asked. "It's kind of fun to move your body while you fight, isn't it?"

He looked back at me with a grin on his face.

"Oh, hells yeah!" he said.

I nodded, the smile still on my face.

"You ready to move on?" I asked.

"Yeah, man!" he said. "Let's keep going!"

 _Later That Day_

"When I look around, I can't believe it. We're inside a game, bro!" Klein said. "Whoever made it is a genius. This thing's amazing. I mean, I'm just glad that I was born when I was, you know?"

"It's not that big of a deal." I said.

"Hey, cut me some slack!" Klein said. "It's my first full dive!"

"You've never used the NerveGear before today?" I asked. "This is your first time ever?"

"Uh-huh. As soon as I got the money together, I rushed out and got all the hardware to play SAO." Klein said. "I stood in line and scored one of the 10,000 hard copies. Guess you could say I was pretty lucky. Although, you sir were ten times as lucky getting to beta test it."

I turned my head to face him.

"Dude, only a thousand people got the chance!" he said.

"Yeah, I guess I was lucky." I said as I began scratching my neck.

 _In all honesty, I had never really thought about it. A thousand people is really a lot less than what it seems._

"Hey, mind if I ask you how far you got in the beta?" he asked.

"Eh, two months and I couldn't get further than floor eight." I said, before a smile appeared on my face. "But now, I think I can get there within a month, easy."

"Sounds to me like you're pretty in to this." Klein said.

"Yeah, you could say that." I said as I unsheathed my sword and held it in my hands. "During the beta test, SAO was the only thing on my mind. Day and night. In this world, a single blade can take you anywhere you want to go. And even though it's a virtual world, I feel more alive in here than I do in the real one."

I closed my eyes and chuckled. I sheathed my sword before speaking again.

"Anyway, you want to go do some more hunting?" I asked.

"Well, you know it!" Klein said with enthusiasm, turning in the grass to face me. "But the thing is, I'm really hungry. I have to log out."

"Too bad the food here only satisfies your hunger virtually." I said.

"Yeah, for reals! That's why I ordered a pizza for five thirty!" he said as he pointed at me with grin on his face.

"Wow, you're so prepared." I said.

"You know it! Besides, the game can wait until I get my pizza on!" Klein said.

I turned my head to look at the virtual sunset.

"I guess." I said.

Klein got up from the ground next to me.

"Hey, I was going to go meet up with some people I know from another game." He said. "I don't know what you're up to after this, though if you want you can friend 'em and hang with us?"

I raised an eyebrow as I made a light gasp of surprise. I looked down at the ground with a glum look on my face.

"No, it's cool if you don't want to, no pressure! I can always introduce you to them another time or something." He said.

"Yeah, sorry." I said as I looked down. "Thanks, anyway."

"No way! I should be doing all the thanking!" he said as he stepped closer. "Hey, one of these days I promise I'll pay you back for all your help. Virtually, that is."

"Yeah, right." I said as I closed my eyes and smiled.

"Thanks for everything man, really." Klein replied as he stuck out his hand. "Guess I'll see you around, then."

"If there's anything else you want to know, message me." I said as I stuck out my hand.

"Oh, sweet!" Klein said as he grabbed my hand and we shook. "I'll do that!"

Klein waved at me, before turning around and opening his menu. I watched him from over my shoulder as I continued to smile. I began to walk away, when Klein spoke, causing me to turn back around with confusion.

"Huh?" he asked. "Where'd the logout button go?"

"It should be there." I reassured him.

"Hmm. No, it's not there." He said.

I walked over to him out of confusion.

"It should be at the bottom of the main menu." I said as I opened my menu as well.

But he was right. The logout button was gone! I felt a faint chill run down my spine.

"See, not there." Klein said.

"You're right." I said. "It's not."

"Oh, well. Today's what? The first day out of beta?" Klein asked. "There's got to be some bugs. I bet the server people are freaking out right now."

"You will, too." I said.

"Huh?" Klein asked.

I pointed at my clock on my menu.

"Look: It's 5:25." I said.

A look of shock and fear appeared on Klein's face. He held his head as he began to scream.

"Oh my God! My teriyaki-mayo pizza and ginger ale!" he exclaimed.

"Why don't you just contact the Game Master?" I asked in a calm tone.

Klein calmed down.

"Yeah, I did that but nothing's happening." He said. "He's not picking up. Do you if there's another way to log out of this thing?"

I thought about it for a second.

"No." I said at last. "Whenever a player wants to log out of SAO, the only way they can do it is by going through the menu."

"That can't be right!" Klein said. "There's got to be some other way out. Return! Log out! Escape!"

He jumped up into the air while saying that last one. A few minutes passed of us standing there with no change.

"Told you so." I said. "And there wasn't any emergency logout in the manual either."

"No way, you're kidding!" Klein said with disbelief. "I know! I'll just rip the NerveGear off my head…"

He stopped talking as he grabbed his head and started pulling upwards.

"Don't bother. Once you're hooked in, you can't move your body in the real world anymore." I said. "The NerveGear intercepts all commands you give from inside the game using an interface built into the rig."

"Seriously?" Klein asked after a few seconds of silence. "So, now we got to wait until someone gets around to fixing the bug?"

"That, or until someone in the real world comes along and takes the NerveGear off us." I said. "That's it."

"Oh, but I live alone." Klein said. "You?"

I almost hesitated before I spoke.

"I got a mom and a sister." I said. "And I think they'll notice by dinner…"

I didn't have time to finish, as Klein charged me exclaiming my name.

"You got a sister?" he asked with his hands on my shoulders. "How old is your sister? What's she like?"

I let out a nervous sigh as he continued staring at me intently.

"She's into sports and hates games and totally not your type man!" I said. "She wouldn't date a gamer if he…"

"Who cares, I…" Klein interrupted me and to shut him up, I kneed him in the groin.

He let out a yell of pain as he flew backwards and landed on his behind in the grass. That's when he sat up straight.

"Oh, right. Getting kicked in the balls doesn't hurt." He said.

"Be serious. Don't you think this is weird?" I asked.

"Yeah, totally." He said. "But it's just a bug."

I looked to my right.

"This isn't just a bug. If we can't log out, it's going to cause some serious problems for the game." I said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Klein said.

"I wonder if the developers even know what's happening." I said. "Because they could just shut down the server and log everyone out. But why haven't they made an announcement?"

Klein grunted in response and looked as though he were thinking himself. That's when we heard the bells starting to ring. Klein got up to look in the direction of the ringing. We kept staring in the direction of the bells and before we knew it, both I and Klein were teleported against our own will. From the looks of it, Klein and I had been transported back to the plaza within The Town of Beginnings.

And that wasn't all. The Town of Beginnings was rapidly being filled up by other players being teleported in.

"Someone forced a teleport?" I asked myself.

Other players were chattering all around us, all of them most likely just as confused as Klein and I were. That's when I noticed something happening up in the sky.

"Look," I said as I approached Klein. "Up there."

He did as I said and looked up. There was a red block flashing up in the sky, labeled "Warning".

"Now what?" I asked in a nervous tone.

As I looked up at the sky, as the red block began to be surrounded by other red blocks, this time being labeled "System Announcement". They kept appearing, until as far as the eye could see, the entire sky was made up of red blocks. Eventually, from the cracks in between every red block, a substance that looked like blood began to drip out. It began to accumulate into a giant mass of red, and electricity began to spark around the top of it.

"What the hell is that thing?" Klein asked with shock.

I didn't have an answer; I just continued looking at it. Eventually the mass took shape, taking the form of a giant man wearing a red cloak, with gold trim and it's hood up, so you couldn't see his face.

"Is that the game master?" one player asked.

"Why doesn't he have a face?" another player asked.

One other player asked if this was an event, but I doubted that. This was too weird and too sudden to be an event. I had a strange feeling that something bad was coming.

"I'm scared." A female player said.

"Don't worry." A male player reassured her. "It's just part of the opening ceremony."

I was scared myself in all honesty, but I didn't show it.

"Attention, players." The man in the cloak spoke in a loud and clear voice as his arms rose on either side of him. "I welcome you to my world."

"What's he mean by that?" I asked myself.

"My name is Akihiko Kayaba." He said. "And as of this moment, I am in control of this world."

I let out a gasp of shock. My mind flashed to all of Kayaba's books that I had at home. He was the inventor of the NerveGear and created Sword Art Online! A chorus of "Wow is that really him"s and "Wow, that's some entrance"s erupted all around us.

"I'm sure most of you have already noticed an item is missing from your main menus." He said as he opened his menu. "The logout button. Let me assure you, this isn't a defect in the game. I repeat, this is not a defect. This is how Sword Art Online was designed to be."

A chorus of gasps of shock erupted around Klein and I.

"He's kidding, right?" Klein asked.

"You cannot log yourselves out in SAO." Kayaba said, confirming that he was being serious. "And no one from the outside can shut down or remove the NerveGear from your head. If anyone attempts to do so, a transmitter inside the NerveGear will discharge a microwave signal to your skull, destroying your brain, and ending your life."

A mixture of shocked responses erupted among the group of thousands of players. Someone tried to leave the area, only to be stopped by an invisible barrier.

"Heh, are you listening to this crap?" Klein asked from beside me. "He's gotta be nuts, right? Right, Kirito?"

He turned to face me as he said my name.

"He's not. The transmitter's signals in the headgear works just like microwaves." I said. "If the safety's turned off, they could fry your brain."

"Couldn't someone cut the power or…?" he asked.

"That won't work." I said, interrupting him. "The NerveGear's got an internal battery."

Klein just looked at me for a second or so, before letting out a grunt of frustration.

"This is crazy." He said. "It's totally crazy!"

"Despite my warning, family and friends of some of the players have attempted in removing the NerveGear." Kayaba continued. "An unfortunate decision to say the least. As a result, the game now has 213 less players than when it began. They've been deleted from both Aincrad and the real world."

"Two hundred and thirteen?" I asked with shock.

"No way." Klein said. "I don't believe it!"

"As you can see, international media outlets have around the clock coverage of everything," Kayaba spoke. "Including the deaths. At this point, it's safe to assume the likelihood of a NerveGear being removed is minimal at best. I hope this brings you a little comfort as you try to clear the game."

I let out a gasp of shock once again, before gritting my teeth in anger.

"It's important to remember the following: There is no longer any way to revive someone within the game. If your HP drops to zero, your Avatar will be deleted from the system, forever." Kayaba continued. "And the NerveGear will simultaneously destroy your brain."

I let out another gasp of shock. Suddenly, I envisioned myself being charged by a boar and being killed because of it. I clenched my fist out of fear and anger.

"There's only one way for a player to escape now." Kayaba spoke once more. "You must clear the game. Right now, you're gathered on Floor One, the lowest level of Aincrad. If you can make it through the dungeon and defeat the boss, you may advance to the next floor. Defeat the boss on Floor One Hundred, and you will clear the game."

A chorus of confused murmurs erupted all around us.

"Why should we believe any of the crap you're saying?!" one player exclaimed.

"We can't clear all one hundred floors. It's freaking impossible." Klein said, before speaking in a higher tone. "The beta testers never made it that high!"

"Last but not least, I've placed a present in the item storage of every player." He said. "Please, have a look."

I nervously opened my menu and scrolled down to my item storage menu. Once I looked in the item storage, what I saw surprised me.

"A mirror?" I asked with disbelief.

 _Why would Kayaba want us to have mirrors?_

Nonetheless, I clicked on the mirror, causing it to appear in midair and I grabbed it to inspect it. Just as I was looking into the mirror, Klein let out a surprised yell next to me.

"Klein!" I exclaimed as I looked at him, only to see him disappear into a flash of white light.

And he wasn't the only one. All around us, other screaming players were disappearing into flashes of white light. And eventually, the same thing happened to me. Eventually, I appeared back in the same place that I had been in before I had been taken by that flash of white light. I heard someone's footsteps behind me.

"You okay, Kirito?" I heard Klein ask from behind me.

"Y-Yeah." I stammered as I turned to face him and realized that there was something different about Klein.

Klein had an entirely different face!

"Wait, who are you?" I asked.

"I'm me." He said. "And who are you?"

I lifted the mirror, looked into it and was given a startling revelation. I was looking at my real life face! My entire body had changed! And I wasn't the only one. All around us, people were commenting "why did my face change?" and "who are you?". Two players nearby got into an argument about one of them lying about being a girl and the other lying about being seventeen. I turned back to look at Klein.

"Wait a second… You're Klein?" I asked, as he asked me: "You're Kirito?"

He stood there, looking as shocked as I was.

"But, how?" he asked with disbelief.

I thought about for a second.

"The scan…" I said as I figured it out. "There's a high density signal device inside the NerveGear rig. It can see what my face looks like. But how's it know my height and body type?"

"When you first put the NerveGear on, it had you do this calibration thing." Klein said after a few seconds of silence. "It asked you to touch your body all over like this."

He demonstrated and started patting down his arms.

"Remember?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah, you're right! That's where it got our physical data." I said.

"But, this is… What's the point?" he asked in an irritated tone. "Why would anyone do this to us?"

I pointed towards Kayaba's floating form.

"I think he's about to tell us." I said.

"Right now, you're probably wondering, "why?" "Why would Akihiko Kayaba developer of Sword Art Online and the NerveGear, do this?" Kayaba started speaking again. "Ultimately, my goal was a simple one. The reason I created Sword Art Online, was to control the fate of a world of my design."

"Kayaba…" I muttered with anger.

"As you can see, I have achieved my goal." he continued.

My fists trembled from the anger that was radiating off my body.

"This marks the end of the tutorial and the official launch of Sword Art Online." He said. "Players, I wish you the best of luck."

Kayaba's form began to glitch out, until he dissipated into puffs of red smoke. The ceiling flickered for a second as well, before the red tiles disappeared completely, once again revealing the brilliant sunset. Everyone stayed silent, due to shock for what seemed like several seconds. Something dripped onto the stone floor beneath me. I looked down, and I saw a small red puddle on the bricks.

I looked for the source of the red puddle and I found it: the blood from the cut on my thumb, where I had accidentally gotten a papercut hours earlier, before I logged into the game. The blood ran down my thumb and into my gloved palm.

 _It's not a game_ , I thought as I clenched my right hand into a fist. _It's real._ _Akihiko Kayaba created a virtual world. He designed the NerveGear rig. The man's a genius. I've been a fan of his for a long time, so I know… everything he just said, is the truth. If I die in the game, I'll die in real life!_

Someone nearby dropped their mirror and it shattered against the ground. That's when the mass panic began. After a minute or two of standing there, listening to the other players begin to panic, I couldn't take it anymore.

"Come on, Klein." I said as I tapped his shoulder.

I grabbed hold on his hand and ran off, dragging him along before he could protest. After a few minutes of running, we were now in an alley, that was far enough from the other players, so I could explain my plan to him.

"Okay, listen. I'm heading out right now for the next village." I said. "I want you to come."

"Huh?" he asked in a surprised tone.

"If what he said is true, and I think it is, the only way we're going to survive in here is making ourselves as strong as possible." I said as I opened my menu and searched for my map. "In an MMORPG, the money you can earn, XP, once the game starts up, there's only so much of that stuff to go around."

A map had popped up of the first floor of Aincrad, with red dots scattered all across the grid, representing villages and monster spawning locations.

"Look, the fields surrounding The Town of Beginnings are going to be hunted clean soon." I said. "If we head to the next village now, we'll have an easier time collecting cash and points. Don't worry, I know all the paths and places we should avoid. Even if I'm level one, I can get there easy."

I closed my map, as well as my menu and looked back at Klein.

"Well, thanks, but… You know those friends of mine I was telling you about?" he asked. "They stood in line for a whole night to buy this and they're back at the plaza. Somewhere, and I can't leave them."

I looked at Klein's health bar and level, and then at mine. I looked down at the ground.

 _If it were just Klein, but two more, or even one more,_ I thought.

"Sorry." He said.

I let out a grunt of surprise as I looked back up at Klein.

"Can't ask a guy I just met to risk his life for a bunch of strangers, can I?" he asked. "So, don't worry about me. Get your ass to the next village. I'll be fine."

He gave he a thumbs up as he continued talking.

"Last game I played, I ran a Guild. So, I'm more than prepared." He said, before putting his hands on his hips. "And with all the stuff you've taught me, I'll get by, no sweat!"

"Okay." I said in a shaky voice. "If that's what you want. But if you ever need help, don't hesitate to contact me."

Klein nodded, a smile still present on his face. I turned around.

"I'll get going." I said. "Be seeing you, Klein. Take care of yourself."

I began walking down the alley. I had been walking for maybe ten seconds or so, when Klein called out to me.

"Kirito, wait up!" he exclaimed as I heard his thundering footsteps.

I came to a sudden stop and turned to see that Klein had been running after me and had come to a stop.

"Klein?" I asked. "What is it?"

He had bent over, clutching his knees as he caught his breath, which when you thought about it, he hadn't run for long, so it was kind of pathetic. He let out a few more breaths before he looked up at me.

"I changed my mind!" he said.

"Huh?" I asked with surprise.

"I've changed my mind, man!" he said. "I can't let you walk off by yourself!"

"Um, okay…" I said in a confused tone. "But you just said…"

"Yeah, I know what I said!" he exclaimed. "But something just occurred to me!"

"Okay…" I said, still very confused. "And that is?"

"Look man, I get that you may not want to travel with more than one other person, but think about it for just a moment." He said.

So, I did. And he was right. I didn't like the idea of travelling with more than one other player.

"You're right." I said at last. "But what has that got to do with anything?"

"Kirito, I can't let you walk away by yourself." He said. "So, I won't. Don't be a dummy and just think for a moment. You can't beat this game going at it alone."

"Um, yes I can." I said. "And I was planning on it."

Klein stomped his foot in frustration.

"Damn it, Kirito!" he said. "Don't be stupid!"

A red blush appeared on my cheeks.

"Hey, come on man!" I said. "That's not necessary!"

"Just let me explain myself, okay?" he asked.

I let out a sigh as I closed my eyes. Once I had calmed down, I opened my eyes and nodded at him.

"Look, I get it if you may not want to travel with more than one other person, but think about it. I mean it when I say that you can't beat this game by yourself. So, I changed my mind. Let's travel together. We can head back to the plaza and gather up my friends, then we could head to the next village, even if it takes a while."

I was skeptical of what he was saying, but I let him continue nonetheless.

"Think about it. You'd be much more likely not to die if you run with others. If you travel by yourself, you could easily find yourself in a pinch and you may not be able to get yourself out of it. If you travel with others, you could teach them what you taught me, and you'd make them stronger fighters. Not only could they depend on you, but you could learn to depend on them. And even if it ends up just us travelling together, you could watch by back and now knowing what you taught me, I could watch yours."

He stuck out his hand.

"So, what do you say, partner?" he asked.

I hesitated. I wanted to refuse his offer, but there was this: Everything he had told me made complete sense. He was right; I couldn't go at this game alone. If I were to run with a party and if that eventually evolved into joining a Guild, I would have other players backing my every move.

Instead of just me, I would have other players to rely on in a boss fight. With other players, it would be much easier to defeat a boss, opposed to if I ran alone. Sure, I was a strong player, but that didn't mean I had to rely on only myself. I hesitated once again, before I smiled. I took Klein's hand and we shook.

"Okay, partner." I said as we shook.

We shook hands for about five seconds or so and then we let go of one another's hands. He nodded at me, with a smile on his face, and I nodded back at him.

"Alright." I said as I turned in the direction of the Plaza. "Let's go, buddy."

And so, Klein and I walked down the alley, ready to take the game on.

 _Author's Note:_

* And so that's the end of the first chapter. I hope you all enjoyed. Let me know if there's anything missing, how I did in rewriting episode one, all of that good stuff.

* And I'll be reacting to your reviews from here on out at the end of every chapter. So, if you want to receive a shout out from me, post a review!

* Anyway, the following chapters will focus on being adaptations of the coming episodes. And in the next chapter, the differences in my version will become apparent. So, as I said before, I hope you enjoyed. I'm going to go though, so have a fantastic day and bye.

Next Chapter: A month passes since the launch of SAO and the death toll continues to steadily rise. A group of players plan out a boss raid on the first floor of Aincrad. Klein and Kirito meet a player wearing a light brown cloak.


	2. Chapter 2: Beater

Chapter 2: Beater

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Two!

* I really hope that you guys are enjoying the story so far. This took a while to write and even longer to come up with the ideas on how to do my adaptation. Please let me know if I'm doing anything wrong or if I should do something differently. I want to do right by fans of SAO and I'm hoping that my adaptation could be a unique, fresh look at the series. In terms of the Aincrad Arc, at least. Depending on how the story goes and if the readers want another adaptation, then I would try adapting the Alfheim/Fairy Dance arc.

* Anyway, enough of me talking. Let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _December 2_ _nd_ _, 2022 – First Floor: Tolbana_

One month has passed since the game began. Two thousand people have died in that time. And after all this time, no one has managed to defeat the boss of the First Floor. I was a beta tester for SAO and even I haven't found any hints towards the boss room or the location itself.

And in the last month, Klein, his friends and I have been working our butts off leveling ourselves up, increasing our strength, doing quests and generally just getting ready for the boss fight when it was finally found. Well, it was Klein, his friends and I up until a week ago. His friends got offered a spot in a Guild and so did Klein. However, the deal was off if I came with them.

And you know what? In the end, Klein turned down the offer and decided to stick with me. I still remember the events of that day, as if it had only happened yesterday. Well, it had actually happened last week, but still.

 _November 25_ _th_ _, 2022 – First Floor_

We had just finished clearing out a meadow of monsters. All of us were laughing and high fiving each other to celebrate another victory. Eventually, we all sat down to eat our lunches that we had bought from a vendor in The Town of Beginnings. Once he was about halfway through his sandwich, Klein spoke up.

"Okay guys, speak up." He said. "You guys have been distant all day. What're you hiding from us?"

One of Klein's friends, a blonde haired male, looked at the other two and they nodded at him.

"Um, Klein, the three of us have been offered a spot in a Guild." he said.

I spit out a piece of my sandwich in response to what Klein's friend said. Klein and I both looked at them with surprise.

"Wait. Seriously?" Klein asked at last.

"Yeah, seriously." He said. "There's a spot being offered for you too, Klein."

"Wow, are you kidding?!" Klein asked with excitement.

"Yeah." He said. "But the deal's only good if _he_ doesn't come with you."

Klein's friend pointed at me as he said that.

"Wait, what?" I asked with shock.

Klein turned to look at me and then back at his friend.

"Yeah, I agree." He said. "What's wrong with Kirito?"

"We don't have a problem with him." He said. "The Guild does. They wouldn't tell us what their problem with him is, but they sure did tell us that he ain't welcome."

I was in pure shock at what he said. Part of me wanted to cry, but I didn't. I let out a sigh as I packed away my lunch and stood up. Klein looked up at me with surprise.

"Whoa, Kirito!" he said. "What are you doing?"

I sighed as I turned my head to face them.

"I guess this is where we part ways." I said. "Just remember who you used to run with, okay?"

I turned around and began to slowly walk away, until I heard one of Klein's friends begin to speak.

"So, Klein, can we tell the Guild leader that you'll join?" he asked.

Klein was silent for a few seconds.

"Thanks for the offer. But I'm going to have to turn it down." He said.

"What?" Klein's friends and I said in unison, as I turned to face them.

"Sorry, guys. I appreciate the offer and all, but in the end, I gotta stick with Kirito." Klein said. "I can't allow him to go off on his own. Besides,"

Klein stopped speaking as he turned to face me.

"Who am I to break up the Kleinito band?" he asked.

I smirked as I stepped closer to him.

"Kleinito?" I asked. "Is that really what you call our duo, Klein?"

"Hey, it is now!" he said as he chuckled.

"You know, I don't really like that name. I feel like I should be able to name our team." I said. "That being said, how does "Kiritein" sound?"

"Kiritein?" Klein asked as he made a face. "That sounds gay!"

"Not as gay as "Kleinito" sounds." I said, still smirking.

"Hey, I take offense to that!" he said. "I put a lot of work into coming up with that name!"

I scoffed.

"Yeah, I bet." I said. "Probably not even five minutes, right?"

Klein and I probably could have gotten into an argument, but one of his friends interrupted.

"Guys!" he exclaimed, getting our attention.

"Huh?" Klein and I both asked in unison, as we turned to look at the three.

"If you two are just going to keep traveling together, then this is already finished." One of them said. "We part ways here and hope for the best."

"But you guys just can't leave!" I said as I stepped closer to them. "We had a team going! We could protect each other!"

"Yeah, we can leave." One of his friends said. "And don't worry. We've seen what you can do. We know that Klein is in good company."

I blushed from the compliment.

"Thanks." I said.

"No, thank you." He said. "Thanks for allowing us to travel with you."

I nodded.

"We should be off then." One of his friends said. "We'll keep in contact. If you ever need help, just message one of us."

Klein nodded.

"Likewise." I said. "And if _you_ ever get into trouble, don't hesitate to contact Klein or myself."

"We'll make sure to do that." He said, as he turned to catch up with his other two friends. "Take care of yourself, Kirito. You too, Klein."

Klein and I both waved at them as they walked off. Once they were gone, we just stood there alone in the meadow.

"Hey, Kirito?" Klein asked.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Do you think they're in good hands?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Yeah. Yeah, I do. Any Guild would be lucky to have them." I said.

Klein didn't speak for a second.

"Yeah. You're right." He said. "Come on. Let's head back. We need to sign up for a raid party, find a quest or do something."

Klein turned around and started walking, while I remained standing there, still as a statue. Several seconds passed, before I heard Klein's voice from behind me.

"Hey, Kirito!" he said. "You coming or not?"

"Huh?" I asked as I turned around to face him. "Oh, yeah! I'm coming!"

I ran to catch up with him and we started towards the nearest town.

 _December 2_ _nd_ _, 2022 – First Floor: Tolbana_

Today, we were finally holding a meeting to figure out how to find and defeat the boss on the First Floor. I sat in the stands of an Amphitheater type location in Tolbana, by myself waiting for Klein to arrive. He was late, as usual. The meetings leader, a guy with longish blue hair, clapped his hands.

"Okay, people!" He exclaimed. "Now that everyone's here, let's get this meeting started!"

"So, anyway, I want to thank everyone for coming." He spoke after he went quiet for a few seconds. "Good to see you. My name Diavel. And in this game, the job I rule is knight!"

He put his forearm to his chest as a knight would do as he said this.

"Psst! Kirito!" I heard someone whisper my name.

I turned to look up towards the top of the Amphitheater and I saw Klein standing in between two pillars, one of the multiple paths into the Amphitheater. I waved him over to me. He ran down to my level, making more noise than I thought physically possible.

"Hey, man." He whispered to me as he sat down. "Sorry I'm late! What'd I miss?"

"Nothing much, really." I whispered back. "Meeting just started. You're practically right on time!"

"Thanks!"

"No problem. Now, shut up and listen!"

Just before Klein had come in, someone below me yelled at Diavel that there was no job system in the game, which resulted in him scolding them for not taking this meeting seriously. He then went over the fact that the part discovered the boss room at the top of the tower earlier that day.

"First, we need to defeat the boss and make it to Floor Two." Diavel continued. "The next step is we have to tell everyone in The Town of Beginnings that it is possible to beat this game! Fact is, it's our duty as the most capable players here! Do you agree, or not?"

Most of, if not everyone in the stands agreed with Diavel's proposition. Knowing that fact, I leaned forward with my head resting in my hand and I smiled.

"Good on him." Klein said next to me.

I turned to look at him as I continued to smile.

"I know, right?" I asked. "A leader like him has got the players' best interest at heart!"

The clapping ceased and as it did, Diavel began speaking again. And as he did, I turned my head back to look at him once more.

"Okay! Glad to hear you're all with me on this. Now, let's figure out how we're going to beat the boss. First off, we'll team up into parties of six!"

That caused my smile to melt from my face.

 _Parties of six? But Klein and I were just a duo!_

I looked at Klein and the look on his face told me that he was thinking the same thing.

"Dude, what are we going to do?" he asked. "There's only two of us!"

"I don't know, let me think!" I said. "Oh man, who would take in two players like us?"

I began to look around.

"A typical party doesn't stand a chance against a Floor boss." Diavel continued. "We need a raid group, made up of multiple parties!"

As I looked all around us, I noticed that all of the players were already forming parties. All except for one player that sat several feet away from Klein and I. They sat all by themselves and they wore what looked to be a brown cloak with the hood over their head, so I couldn't tell if they were male or female.

"Klein." I said as I pointed over at the cloaked player.

He looked over at the player.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

He looked confused.

"Come on." I said as I got up, before making a light jog over to the player.

I sat down next to the cloaked player.

"You got left out too, huh?" I asked.

Klein moved over to us and sat above her shoulder.

"Yeah, you could totally team up with us!" he said. "We had three players with us before, but they all got accepted into a Guild. So, we're kind of alone now, heh, heh!"

The player didn't speak for a second. Klein and I both glanced at each other with confusion, before the player finally spoke.

"Why didn't you join up with them?" the player asked in a monotone voice, making it very difficult to tell if it was a male or female's voice.

Klein and I looked back at each other and chuckled.

"Well, he was offered a spot in the Guild." I said. "But the deal was kind of off, you know, if I came with him?"

The player turned to look at me.

"There something wrong with you?" the player asked.

"Heh, heh." I nervously chuckled. "You tell me."

The player just continued looking in my general direction, but I couldn't tell if they were looking at me. That's when I noticed something. The player's lips. They looked feminine, I guess? But before I could get a closer look, the player must have noticed my looking and they pulled the hood of their cloak further over their head, that way I was unable to see their lower face anymore.

"I wasn't even left out." The player finally said. "It just seems like everyone's already friends."

"So, you're a solo player?" I asked. "Do you want to partner up with me and my buddy?"

The player looked in my direction.

"You heard what Diavel just said." Klein chimed in. "We can't beat the boss on our own and you can't do it by yourself, either."

"And it would only have to be for this fight." I finished for him. "Afterwards, we don't have to remain in a party, unless you want to."

The player gave us a short nod. I opened up my menu and sent the player a party invitation and they accepted it. Once the player joined our party, Klein and I got to see their name. Their name was Asuna.

 _Asuna? Asuna isn't a boy's name! It sounds like more of a girl's name!_

I decided not to question it as Asuna was now looking at me. The sound of Diavel beginning to talk again interrupted the staring contest that Asuna and I seemed to be having.

"Alright! Look's like everyone's teamed up! Now then…"

"Hold on a sec!" someone exclaimed, interrupting Diavel.

Everyone, Klein and Asuna included, looked up to the top of the Amphitheater, to see a male player with spiky red hair standing there. As soon as I saw him, I felt irritated.

"Oh no." I said in an irritated tone.

"Damn it!" Klein cursed. "What is he doing here?"

"Who?" Asuna asked, looking in his direction. "What's going on?"

"It's Kibaou, that dude with the spiky red hair up there." I said as I pointed up at him, thankfully he didn't notice. "God, what is he doing here?"

"What's his problem?" Asuna asked, turning to look at Klein.

"No, he's right. Kibaou is a bit of a thorn in our side." Klein said as he looked back at Asuna. "He hates beta testers. And Kirito here…"

"Likes beta testers. I like beta testers." I stepped in before Klein could allow my secret to slip out. "So, that puts us at odds. Well, let's see what he has to say."

Kibaou had jumped down several steps at a time, until he was down on the stage with Diavel.

"My name's Kibaou, got that?" he asked. "Before we take on the boss, I want to get something off my chest. We all know about the two thousand people who have died so far, yeah?"

 _Is he going to say what I think he's going to say?_

"Well some of you need to apologize to 'em right now!" he exclaimed as he pointed upwards at us.

I gritted my teeth with anger and did my best to contain myself. There was small uproar of unpleasant grunts amongst the group.

"Kibaou, I think I know who you're referring to." Diavel spoke next to him, causing Kibaou to turn and look at him. "You mean the ones that are ex-beta testers, right?"

"Of course, I mean them! The day this stupid ass game started, the beta guys just vanished, right? They ditched all us beginners! "

 _That's the exact opposite of what I did! Despite my reluctance, I didn't ditch Klein! I'd stuck with him for the better half of the last month!_

I was sick of what Kibaou was saying already. I was beginning to let out a low growl of anger and I was pretty sure that Asuna was glancing at me. I had had enough of this. I was ready to get up, walk down there and give Kibaou a piece of my mind. In fact, I almost did. I was about halfway out of my seat, when I felt Klein's hands on my shoulder, forcing me back down.

"Hey, easy! Let's try to calm down, okay?"

"Fine!" I hissed as I pushed his hands off of me.

"They snagged all of the good hunting spots" Kibaou continued speaking. "And all the easy quests, too. They were the only ones getting stronger in here. This whole time, they've ignored us like we're nothing!"

 _Does this guy even hear himself?_

Kibaou grunted with anger before he continued speaking.

"Hell, I bet there's some of them here! Come on out beta testers! We should make them apologize to us and we should make them give up all the items and money they've got! They can't expect the party to trust them when they don't trust us. Why should we?"

I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth once again, trying to prevent myself from exploding with anger. Just then, a new voice spoke out.

"Could I say something?"

I opened my eyes out of confusion. I watched as an African-American man wearing a sleeveless vest got up from his place in the stands. He walked down to the stage until he stood next to Kibaou.

"Hey, my name's Agil." The man introduced himself. "Kibaou, right? I want to make sure I'm on the same page. You say the ex-beta testers should be blamed for the rookies deaths, because they didn't help them. And you want them to apologize and give up their winnings. I leave anything out?"

"No, you didn't." Kibaou said, still using an angry, mean tone of voice.

Agil put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small brown book.

"The item store hands these out for free. It's a guidebook. You got one, didn't you?"

"Sure, I got one." Kibaou said in a surprised tone, but the anger and mean tone stayed the same. "So, what about it?"

"You know who was handing these out? The ex-beta testers."

An outcry of shocked gasps and sayings of disbelief erupted amongst the stands. I could barely hear Kibaou let out a growl of anger, which made me smile.

"Finally, someone decided to stand up to this clown." I said over all the noise.

"Amen to that." Klein agreed.

Agil turned to the stands to look at all us spectators.

"Listen up. Everyone had equal access to this information." he said. "Even so, lots of players still died. "Now, I didn't come here to point fingers at anyone. I'm here because I want to learn from those players' deaths. I'm here, because I want to figure out how we're gonna beat the boss."

I breathed a sigh of relief. Agil turned around to look back at Kibaou, while Kibaou shot Agil an angry look. Kibaou finally grunted with anger and went to go sit down all by himself. Diavel stepped back up into the metaphorical spotlight.

"Okay, can we get back to the meeting now?" he asked.

Most of everyone, Klein and I included, nodded their heads. I looked over to Asuna, but they didn't nod back at me.

"For info on the boss, it's all in here. The latest issue of the guidebook you just heard about."

A few grunts of surprise were heard among us.

"According to the book, the boss's name is Illfang the Kobold Lord." Diavel spoke once more as he read from the book. "Also, he'll be surrounded by his minions, the Ruin Kobold Sentinels. Illfang carries an axe and a buckler. He has four health bars, and when the last one turns red, he switches to a curved sword-type weapon called a Talwar. He can change his patterns of attack, too."

Multiple shocked murmurs were heard among the crowd. After several seconds of talking amongst ourselves, Diavel closed his guidebook.

"That's it for the briefing." He said. "As for the distribution of loot, money will be divided equally among everyone. The party that defeats the boss gets the XP. And whoever gets an item gets to keep it. Any objections?"

There were lots of murmurs of approval amongst us.

"Good!" Diavel exclaimed. "We leave tomorrow at ten in the morning! Meeting adjourned, people!"

Some people started to get up all around us, others remained where they sat. Klein and I chose the latter. I looked up, to see that Asuna was already leaving the Amphitheater. I got up and so did Klein.

"So, what do you think?" I asked him.

"I think he's an interesting player." Klein said. "Why do you think he wears a cloak with its hood up all day?"

"I don't know." I said. "I think she just might be a loner."

Klein's eyes filled with shock.

"Hold the phone, man!" he said. "Did you just say "she"?"

I nodded.

"The player's name is Asuna." I said. "Asuna sounds more like a girl's name to me. So, I'm going to just say that she's a girl."

Klein looked like he was thinking for a second. He then smiled.

"You could be right, Kirito." He said. "But I'm going with my take on this. I'm going to keep saying that Asuna's a guy."

"You wanna bet?" I asked him in a dangerous tone.

"Why not?" Klein asked. "I could kick your ass, easy!"

"Okay, let's make a bet, then. If I'm right, and Asuna turns out to be a girl, you owe be the best drink in all of Tolbana!" I said. "And if you're right, and Asuna turns out to be a guy, then I'll owe you a full course dinner meal!"

"Shake on it?" Klein asked.

I stuck out my hand, he took it and we shook.

"It's a bet, buddy!" I exclaimed.

"Are you guys coming or not?" Asuna asked in a monotone voice from right next to us.

Klein and I both jumped in shock and turned to see Asuna standing no more than two feet from us. I don't know why, but I could have sworn that I saw a small smile playing on Asuna's lips, even through the darkness that the hood of the cloak created. Asuna then turned and walked towards the exit. Klein and I then looked at each other, nodded and we both followed Asuna out of the Amphitheater.

 _Later That Evening_

"So, you ready for the boss fight tomorrow?" Klein asked as we walked through the alleys of Tolbana.

"I don't know man, I have my doubts." I said. "But if we have a third player with us, we may have a chance."

"I agree. Even if the new recruit keeps to himself."

"Herself."

"Whatever."

After we both went silent, we turned a corner into another alley and saw Asuna, sitting on a stone wall and struggling to eat a biscuit, that was practically hard as a rock. I looked at Klein and he nodded at me. We walked over, and I sat down next to Asuna, while Klein stood behind.

"Those are pretty good, aren't they?" I asked.

"You could have asked to sit down first." Asuna said without looking at me.

My face flushed.

"Oh, um, sorry. I guess I didn't really think about it."

Asuna didn't answer. She scooted a foot or so away from me. I took out a biscuit that I had been storing and bit into it.

"You really think these are good?" Asuna asked next to me.

"Uh-huh." I said as I chewed pieces of the biscuit up. "Since Klein and I came to this town, we've ended up eating at least one a day."

Asuna looked at me.

"Oh, right. We haven't properly introduced ourselves, sorry! I'm Kirito!" I said as I pointed my thumb at my chest with a smile on my face. "And that's Klein!"

"Sup?" Klein asked as he started eating his biscuit and as I pointed at him.

Asuna said nothing but kept looking at us.

"This is the part where you would introduce yourself." I said.

She remained silent for a few seconds, before she eventually spoke.

"I'm Asuna. Pleased to meet you, Klein and Kirito."

I looked up at Klein and he just shrugged, so I went back to eating my biscuit.

"Hey, Klein?" I asked.

"Yeah?" he asked in return.

I pulled out a jar of cream from my storage and handed it to him.

"Go nuts." I said.

Klein's face lit up as I handed him the jar.

"Oh, sweet!" he said. "Thanks, bro!"

I chuckled at him acting like a child on Christmas morning. He walked off in an opposite direction as he put the cream on the last half of his biscuit, leaving Asuna and I alone. Asuna watched him go and then turned to look at me.

"What was that you just gave him?" Asuna asked.

"It's a type of cream that the vendors in town sell." I said. "It goes great with the biscuits and it moistens them up, so they're easier to eat without you having to break a tooth."

"Oh." Asuna said, before looking away from me once again.

I sort of felt sorry for Asuna. I don't know what it was, but I felt as though Asuna would want some of the cream. I don't know why, but I felt like I was being watched just now. I turned around slightly and saw Klein standing several feet away from us, leaning up against a stone brick wall. He nodded at me, as if he knew what I was thinking. I turned back to Asuna, who was still having a hard time with the biscuit.

"Here." I said as I pulled my last pot of cream from my storage and set it down in between us. "Try that. Trust me, it's good."

Asuna cautiously tapped the lid of the pot and a small light appeared on Asuna's fingers, which shocked Asuna a little bit. Asuna then ran their fingers over the biscuit and the cream dispensed itself.

"Cream?" Asuna asked.

I spread some of the cream onto my biscuit and the pot subsequently exploded into thousands of small glittery pieces. I took a bite out of my biscuit as Asuna watched. Asuna did the same, taking a small bite at first. After that, Asuna practically inhaled the whole thing within a matter of seconds.

"I also got it as a quest award from the quest, "The Heifer Strikes Back"." I said as I looked at Asuna. "Klein and I completed that quest in the village behind us."

"Thanks." Asuna said. "But I didn't come to this town for the food."

"Okay." I said. "So, what are you here for?"

"So I don't lose sight of who I am." Asuna replied. "I don't want to lock myself into a room in The Town of Beginnings and slowly rot away. I'd rather stay the way I am till the last moment."

I looked at Asuna, waiting for them to speak again.

"Even if I a monster beats me, and I die, I won't lose." Asuna kept talking. "I won't lose. To this game, or to this world. No matter what."

I kept looking in Asuna's direction, before I turned away and threw the last bit of biscuit into my mouth.

"I wouldn't want a party member dying on me. But you don't have to worry about that. Klein and I will look out for you and you can look out for us."

Asuna didn't speak. I turned to see Asuna licking the crumbs off of their hands, as if they were still hungry.

"You sound confident." Asuna replied. "You've done this before?"

"Klein and I have been partners since day one." I said. "Trust me, you're in good hands."

"If you say so." Asuna said, before turning to look at me. "Um, I don't mean to sound greedy or anything, but do you have any of that bread left? Maybe some of that cream, too?"

"No, sorry. That was the only biscuit I had. As for cream, that was the last pot I had. As for Klein, he may still have some more if you just want to put some on your fingers and lick it off."

I looked back at Klein, just to see his pot of cream shatter into thousands of glittering pieces.

"Oh, never mind." I said.

"That's alright." Asuna said. "I wasn't that hungry anyway."

There was silence between Asuna and I now. Eventually, I heard footsteps approaching us and I turned to see Klein walking back up to us, as he tossed the last bit of biscuit into his mouth.

"Hey, Kirito, there's something I've been meaning to tell you." He said.

"Yeah?" I asked as I turned back away from him. "What's that?"

"You look a lot better this way!" he complimented. "Your real life appearance suits you and looks much better than your avatar! In fact, I'd go as far to say that you look kinda cute!"

I gasped with shock as I looked back up at him, with a blush on my face. He beamed at me and I eventually smiled back.

"Yeah," I said. "And that scruffy, unkept, poor excuse for a beard suits you much better, too!"

His face turned red.

"Hey, come on man!" he exclaimed. "That's not necessary!"

"Do you guys always act like this?" Asuna asked, interrupting us. "Always berating each other?"

"Yeah, man!" Klein said. "Totally!"

"I guess you could say it's part of our charm?" I asked, chuckling as I scratched the back of my neck.

I don't know why, but after a few seconds, I could have sworn I saw Asuna smile a toothy grin, even from the darkness of the cloak, I could swear that I saw it.

"Okay, my turn." Asuna said.

"Huh?!" Klein and I both asked with shock in unison.

Asuna turned to us and pointed at me first.

"You need to consider clipping your hair!" Asuna said, before turning to point at Klein. "And he's right! Would it kill you to shave?"

"Wow. That burns." Klein said.

"Oh, yeah?" I asked as I looked at Asuna. "Well, you… You… See, what I mean is…"

"Ha! You can't come up with something because you can't even see my face!" Asuna said. "Good try though!"

The last couple things Asuna said, I picked up on the fact that Asuna's voice sounded feminine when they weren't speaking in a monotone voice. That only helped strengthen my theory that Asuna was actually a girl.

"You know guys, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!" Klein said.

Asuna looked away.

"Who said anything about friends?" Asuna said. "All you said was "just for this one fight". Once this fight is over, I'm leaving if I want to. No offense to either of you. You both seem to be fairly nice guys."

I didn't say anything.

"That's all right. Besides, Kirito and I are used to traveling just us. You don't have to join us unless you absolutely want to!"

"Speaking of which, why are you just hanging out by yourself?"

Asuna didn't speak for a few seconds.

"I've always ran alone. I've never been good at making new friends." Asuna said. "And besides, I'm not that good at MMOs, so I don't want someone to get themselves killed because of my stupidity."

"I'm sorry."

Asuna didn't respond.

"Look, promise me one thing."

Asuna looked in my direction.

"Look, I know that you may not like traveling with other players. But hear me out. You'll get nowhere by yourself. I almost went off by myself when the game started, but Klein helped me see the error of my ways. I don't want you to go get yourself killed because you don't have anyone to help you! Plus, if you join up with us, I would be more than happy to teach you stuff you need to know about MMOs! Just think about it, okay?"

Asuna said nothing. Klein tapped me on the shoulder. I looked up at him.

"Maybe it's time for us to leave the rookie alone. Besides, we've got a big day tomorrow and it's getting late. We should go find an Inn to check into."

I nodded.

"You're right." I said as I got up.

I turned to look at Asuna, who still hadn't moved. I moved towards Asuna and gently put my hand on Asuna's shoulder.

"We're calling it a night. We'll see you tomorrow."

We started walking away but stopped when we heard Asuna begin speaking again.

"I prefer not to travel with other players. That's just the way I am. I won't promise you anything. I will say however, that I might think about it."

I looked back at Asuna, but I didn't say anything. Eventually I turned back around and followed Klein.

 _December 3_ _rd_ _, 2022 – First Floor: Forest Field_

"Okay, let's go over it again." I spoke as I walked with Klein and Asuna through the forest, tailing several feet behind the main group. "We're the backup, so our target's going to be the boss's minions, the Ruin Kobold Sentinels."

"We know." Klein replied in a sarcastic tone.

I shot him a glare.

"I'll use a sword skill to knock their weapons up and out of the way. When I do, you'll guys switch and jump in."

"What's a switch?" Asuna asked a few seconds later.

I looked back at Asuna with confusion.

"Okay, level with me. Is the first time you've ever been in a party?"

"Mm-Hmm."

Asuna walked ahead of us, leaving Klein and I in the dust. Klein and I stopped walking entirely and when we didn't catch up, Asuna turned around to face us.

"Are you guys coming or not?"

Klein and I jogged back over and caught up with Asuna.

 _Sometime Later_

Diavel stabbed his sword into the stone floor as he looked at us.

"Listen up, everyone. I've only got one thing to say to you. Let's win! Come on!"

He turned around, put his hand on the doors to the boss room and the doors opened. As the doors opened, the room was slowly lit up by dim light. Once the room was fully lit up, we could see to the back of the room. And at the back of the room, sitting on his throne, was Illfang the Kobold Lord, the boss of the First Floor. He looked up as Diavel approached, all of us right behind him.

Once we were ten feet or so into the room, the room completely lit up and Illfang leapt from his throne, slamming his Axe into the ground as he landed. His name appeared over his head, followed by his four health bars, which appeared to his left. The boss fight had begun. His Sentinels began to spawn all around him and they all ran towards us, followed by Illfang.

"Commence attack!" Diavel exclaimed as he pointed his sword toward our adversaries.

Everyone ran forward, save for Klein, Asuna and me, as well as a few others.

"You heard the man!" I exclaimed as I drew my sword. "Let's focus on his Sentinels so the main group can move in on Illfang!"

"Right!" Klein exclaimed as he drew his sword as well.

As Diabel kept shouting out orders, Klein, Asuna and I moved in to combat the Sentinels that had moved away from their master.

I sprang forward and struck a Sentinel with my sword, sending him backwards.

"Switch!" I exclaimed.

Klein was about to jump in front of me, but Asuna beat him to it.

"I'm on it!" Asuna exclaimed, drawing their sword.

 _I thought Asuna was a beginner, but Asuna's got some skills!_ _I can't even see the tip of Asuna's sword!_

That's when I noticed something about Asuna's sword. It was unlike any other sword I'd ever seen in Sword Art Online. It looked like a rapier, like the kinds of swords that originated from Spain.

"Right on." I said as I watched the display of Asuna kicking the crap out of Illfang's Sentinels.

"Wow." Klein said next to me.

"I know, right?"

Out of nowhere, a Sentinel leapt towards me and I thought I was as good as dead. Klein jumped in front of me and killed the Sentinel in one strike before it could hit me. I let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Klein."

"You're not dying on my watch, Kirito. But seriously man, you need to keep an eye out."

I shot him a look.

"Point taken, Klein." I said.

I looked up to check the main group's progress on Illfang. His last health bar was in the red zone.

 _This is going great! It's easy!_ _Wait, it's almost too easy…_

Kibaou muttered something about the guidebook being right, as Illfang tossed his war axe and shield aside.

"Stand back!" Diavel said, running forward as he raised his shield. "I've got it!"

I looked at Diavel and stopped in my tracks, as Asuna and Klein ran forward.

"I thought the plan was for everyone in the group to surround it?" I asked out loud.

"Who cares?" Asuna asked from somewhere else. "Focus on the mission!"

"Yeah, Kirito!" Klein chimed in. "You're giving it too much thought!"

I ignored them and kept watching the fight. Diavel stopped in his tracks and started charging up his sword skill, just as Illfang drew his Talwar. That's when it hit me. It wasn't a Talwar!

"That's not a Talwar!" I exclaimed. "It's a No-Dachi! That's not the same as the beta test!"

"What?" Asuna asked with surprise.

I ran forward, disregarding what I was told to do.

"Kirito!" Klein exclaimed with worry. "What are you doing?!"

"That's not a Talwar! It's a No-Dachi! I have to help Diavel before he gets himself killed!"

I ran towards Diavel and Illfang with speed I didn't no I even had, just as Illfang began to jump and bounce off of the pillars in the room.

"Get out of the way!" I exclaimed as I pushed Diavel out of Illfang's sights.

Somehow, I don't know how, I was able to get my sword ready and block Illfang's blade just as he landed right next to me. I tried my best to keep Illfang's blade at bay, but eventually, I knew I would give out. That's when from out of nowhere, an additional sword blade clanged against Illfang's No-Dachi. I gasped with surprise, as I turned to my left, to see Asuna at my side, helping me keep the monster's blade at bay with their rapier.

"What are you doing?" I asked as I looked at Asuna, straining to keep my blade from falling.

Asuna was already straining as well to keep their blade against the No-Dachi.

"Hey, we're in this together, aren't we?"

I wanted to smile with gratitude, but I didn't have time to.

"Hey, Klein! Can we get some help over here?!"

"Oh, come on!" Klein exclaimed, as I heard him run forward nonetheless.

But even with our three swords blocking back Illfang's blade, he was still too strong for us and any second now, he would be able to push forward and possibly kill the three of us.

"Fall back!" I grunted as I tried to push back harder on his blade.

"What?" Klein asked. "No! We can do this!"

"We can't! But we can fall back! If we don't, he'll just push us over and possibly kill us all! If we fall back now, he won't be able to track us all! If one of us gets hit, I got a few health potions, so we should be fine. But we have to move now! No one's going to die today!"

Neither Klein or Asuna said a word.

"Okay." They both finally said in unison.

"Okay, wait for it. Wait for it." I spoke as I pushed down on Illfang's blade as hard as I could. "Now!"

I rolled backwards and so did Klein, just as Illfang struck the ground with his blade. Asuna didn't get so lucky. Asuna got hit in the side by the flat edge of Illfang's blade and went flying a foot or two away from him. I feared that Asuna was done for, but Asuna eventually got back up. That's when I noticed it. Asuna's cloak was ripped on the side, revealing a feminine figure underneath. Asuna's cloak began to shimmer, before exploding into thousands of glittering pieces, fully revealing the girl underneath. That's right, I said girl.

"Damn it!" Asuna exclaimed as she got up, seeming unphased from the blow she took.

"Ha! I knew it!" I exclaimed. "I knew she was a girl! Looks like someone owes me a drink!"

"Oh man, that's crap!" Klein exclaimed. "I knew she was a girl! I knew it all along!"

Asuna looked at me and then back at Klein, quickly putting together the pieces.

"You guys had a bet going on what my gender was?!" she exclaimed with anger.

"This isn't the place or the time!" I exclaimed as I dodged a new strike from Illfang.

I checked my party menu, to see that Klein and I were both fine, but however, Asuna had lost about twenty five percent or so of her health. I quickly opened my inventory as Klein stepped in for me and equipped one of my health potions.

"Here, take this!" I said as I threw the potion in her direction. "And sit this one out!"

I didn't give her time to respond. I ran forward to help Klein fend off Illfang. As Klein handled him, I saw an opening and struck Illfang in the side. Illfang moved to strike me, but I dodged and his blade hit the ground, not striking anything. Before he could lift his blade back up however, Asuna ran forward and up the length of the blade, somehow managing to perfectly balance on the blade.

"I thought I told you to drink that potion?!" I exclaimed.

"I already drank it!" she yelled back, as she leapt off of the blade, up toward Illfang's head.

Once she reached the top of his head, she sank her rapier into his head and then kickflipped off of his head. She landed next to me and I watched as his health meter went down, until it was nearly completely drained.

"One more good strike and he's done for!" she said.

I nodded. I looked at her as she looked at me and we nodded at each other. We both ran forward towards Illfang. Asuna struck first and then fell back, allowing me to go in for the kill. I charged up my sword skill and let out a yell before I got to Illfang and struck him with my sword. Illfang was launched backwards, as his body began to glow. And after several seconds, his body exploded into thousands of glittering pieces.

A congratulations message appeared in front of me and lots of cheers erupted from the crowd. I turned to look at everyone, to see Klein and Asuna smiling at me. This was the first time I got a good look at Asuna's face. She had orangish-brownish chestnut hair that reached the middle of her back and it was braided around the back of her head. She also had hazel-colored eyes. I had to say, she looked kind of cute and her eyes were pretty to look at.

She also wore a long sleeved white shirt, with a red vest over that, a red skirt, white stockings and red boots. I had no idea why she kept herself hidden underneath a cloak. She had nothing to hide! But then again, maybe she just didn't want to put herself out there.

I eventually smiled back at them. That's when a message appeared in front of my face. It was the congratulations message again. However, this time it told me I delivered the final blow and I had been awarded with a piece of clothing called "The Coat of Midnight."

"Good job, man!" Klein replied as he walked up to me.

I dismissed the message as a couple other players approached.

"I agree." Agil said as he followed Klein. "That was some pretty good swordsmanship."

I smiled and nodded at them both.

"Hey!" I heard Diavel say.

I turned to look at him as he walked over to me, holding his shoulder.

"You saved my life!" he said. "I don't know what to say!"

I smiled back at him and blushed a little bit. I opened my mouth to say something, but I never got the chance. Over the sound of people still cheering, Kibaou spoke. Or rather, he yelled.

"Stop cheering!"

The cheering began to die down, as Kibaou began walking over to me, with the usual angry expression on his face.

"You knew, didn't you? You knew what technique the boss would use!"

I was confused.

"You could have told us! You could have told us and Diavel would never have been in any danger!"

"I _didn't_ know what the boss would do! I didn't notice until I noticed he was using a different weapon then the one we had been brought to believe he'd use!"

Kibaou looked confused.

"Different weapon? How'd you…" Kibaou cut himself off and got angry again. "You're an ex-beta tester, aren't you?! That's how you knew what the boss would do! That's how you guessed it's techniques!"

"Kibaou…" Diavel tried to reason with Kibaou, but it was no use.

"So, you think I used to be a beta tester, don't you?" I challenged him. "Well, I'm nothing like the other ex-beta testers! During the beta, I was able to reach higher levels than any of the other testers. I knew about the boss when I first saw it take out that No-Dashi, because I've fought tons of other monsters with higher sword skills then Illfang! Not only that, I know tons of other stuff, too!"

Kibaou didn't respond.

"I know more things than you could even imagine. I would bet you I know more information than any info broker!"

"What the hell…" was all that Kibaou could say. "You would withhold information? Then you're worse than a beta tester! You're a God damned cheater is what you are!"

"Kibaou!" Diavel exclaimed with frustration. "Knock it off!"

It was no use. Kibaou wasn't done.

"You're a beta tester and a cheater. You're a… a beater!"

"A beater?" I asked as I looked down. "That's pretty good!"

I brought up my menu and went into my storage menu.

"Okay, you can call me a beater. Hell, call me anything you want." I said, as I equipped the Coat of Midnight.

A thin, yet warm jet black trench coat materialized on my shoulders and the length ran down to just below my knees. I looked back up at Kibaou.

"Just know one thing. Kibaou. Call me beater, call me cheater, call me whatever you want. Just remember one thing. Remember that I was able to save Diavel, while you chose to stand back and do nothing. Remember that when you've lost your best player."

After having said that, I turned around and walked towards the exit. I was about halfway up the stairs to the exit, when I heard two sets of footsteps behind me.

"Kirito, wait up!" Klein said.

I stopped in my tracks. I turned to look at Klein and Asuna standing behind me.

"You were just gonna leave us in the dust like that?" he asked.

I chuckled.

"Why would you want to travel with a beater like me?" I asked. "Don't follow me, Klein."

Klein's face flushed.

"Kirito, what are you saying?" he asked.

"Sorry, Klein." I said. "Kleinito has broken up."

"Wait, what about us?" Asuna asked. "Where do we go from here?"

I turned around to face them.

"Klein, take care of Asuna. Teach her everything I taught you." I said, earning a look of shock out of Asuna, possibly because I called her by her name for the first time. "Keep each other alive. Take care of each other. Go your way. I'll find my own way around."

Klein looked down while Asuna stared up at me, saying nothing.

"And if the day comes, if you two are offered a spot in a Guild, don't hesitate to take it." I said. "There's a limit to what duo players can do."

"So, you're going solo?" Asuna asked.

I turned back around without answering at first.

"I'm sorry that it has to end this way." I said. "But who knows? Maybe one day, we'll cross paths again."

I opened my party menu and moved my finger to the disband party button. My hand hovered there for a few seconds, before I pressed the button and removed Klein and Asuna from my party. The doors opened, and I began my walk out.

Once I was a few feet out, I turned around to look at Klein and Asuna. It looked like Klein was crying and when Asuna noticed me looking, she shot me a look of anger. I took that as my cue to exit, turned back around and I started walking.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for this chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed! I hope you guys enjoyed the moments between Kirito, Klein and Asuna.

* What do you think of my differences here? Diavel didn't die and Klein was a part of the boss fight. In the end, Kirito still left, but this sets him on his path to eventually join the Moonlit Black Cats.

* Anyway, once again, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you're enjoying my adaptation so far. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _TyIsGaming05 (Chapter One): Nice story man can't want to see we're it goes from here_

Thank you, Ty. I'm not quite sure where this story will go yet, but I really hope it lives up to the expectations of SAO fans. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _believergirl62 (Chapter One): I think it's an interesting concept. I love Sword Art Online, but I do like reading stories like this where Kirito isn't so alone, and, I don't know where you're taking this version of the story, but I have always seen Kirito as a guild leader if you go that direction, and I'm glad that you're keeping the kirito and Asuna pairing because I love them together._

Thank you, I'm glad you think it's an interesting take. I love Sword Art Online, too. I'm pretty new to it, as I watched the entire of the Aincrad arc and the Alfheim arc in almost an entire day. I started watching last Tuesday and finished with the end of the Alfheim arc on that Thursday. I'm a little ashamed of that, but we all have our hobbies.

I know how my adaptation will end, it's much different than the Anime, however, I don't know how I'm going to get there yet. I love seeing Kirito and Asuna together as well, I can't see him not being with her and vice versa. Keep in mind, that it takes longer for them to get together in my version, as their relationship develops over a longer period of time. They will get together, though. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _flo463: Kirisuna? I saw that you had put Sachi as a tag. If Sachi survives, why again Kirito x Asuna and not Kirito x Asuna please? or Kirito x harem? I read the Sao novels. I always felt that Sachi's death was forced by the author only to put Kirito and Asuna together!_

 _I'm sure that if Kirito and Sachi had time to develop their relationship, they would end up being forming a couple as cute as Kirito and Asuna. for proof, we know absolutely nothing about Sachi in irl and after Aincrad, Kirito seem to totally forget her as if her had never existed! snif_

Sorry, man it's purely Kirisuna, even if it takes a while. I put Sachi as a tag, because she is more of a main character in my adaptation. I won't confirm whether or not Sachi will see the end of the Aincrad arc, but I can say that Sachi and Kirito won't end up together. And for that, I am sorry.

Next Chapter: Kirito joins the Guild known as the Moonlit Black Cats. When tragedy strikes, Kirito vows to protect the last standing original member of the Guild. Kirito sets out on a quest to kill a limited event boss and in the process, reunites with Klein and Asuna.


	3. Chapter 3: The Red-Nosed Reindeer

Chapter 3: The Red-Nosed Reindeer

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Three! This will probably be the last time I say it, but this will be my adaptation of Episode Three of the Anime and the following chapters will be my adaptations of the following episodes.

* Before I begin, I just want to say that this is a very long chapter. Probably the longest chapter I've ever written for any of my stories. And that's not an understatement.

* This chapter will also contain one of the biggest differences that my adaptation has when compared to the Anime. I won't say much else here. Let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _April 8_ _th_ _, 2023 – Eleventh Floor: Taft_

"Here's to us, the Moonlit Black Cats! Cheers everyone!"

"Cheers!" a cry of excitement exploded from the five Guild members that I was sitting with.

It had been several months since I had last seen Klein and Asuna. In my time apart from them, I had made an effort to keep to myself. But today, I had run into a Guild that were in a bit of a pinch. So, against my best wishes, I helped them out. After I saved them, they introduced themselves as the Moonlit Black Cats and they wanted to by me a drink for my troubles. And, well, who was I to refuse?

I looked on at them awkwardly from my seat, not feeling at all welcome. There were five of them, as I had said before. There were three guys and two girls. All of them wore the same silver armor plating, while all of them wore a different color beneath the plating. Keita, the Guild's leader wore maroon.

Sachi, a small and shy girl, wore a mixture of light blue and dark blue. Tetsuo, one of their fighters, wore purple. Sasamaru, the other girl, wore green with a silver cap and lastly, Ducker, the Guild's treasure hunter, wore yellow with a dark gold cloak type thing, with a beanie.

Almost all of them had the same color hair: brown. With the exceptions of the one in the beanie having blonde hair and the one in light and dark blue, whose hair was so black that it kinda looked like it was dark blue, if that made sense.

"I got another! Here's to the guy that saved our lives!" Ducker. "To Kirito!"

"To Kirito!" the remaining four members chimed in.

My face flushed in embarrassment as they all looked at me.

"Uh, cheers guys." I said in much smaller voice than I meant to speak in.

"Thanks!" one of them said.

"Thanks!" Another said.

"Yeah, man." One of the other guys said. "You saved us back there!"

"Thank you." Sachi said. "Thank you so much."

"Oh, it's cool." I said.

She just stared back at me with the same look.

"I can't tell you how scared I was." She said. "And it made me so happy when you came to save us, I…"

She stopped speaking and started sniffling, as if she were going to cry.

"Oh, well…" I started speaking, only to get interrupted by Keita.

"Um, Kirito Sir?" he asked.

" _Sir?" I don't like the sound of that at all! I'm too young to be referred to as Sir!_

"I hope I'm not out of line asking this," he continued. "but I was wondering what level you're at?"

I looked down and sighed.

"Look, if you're going to ask me to join your Guild, don't." I said. "I was a beta tester and I'm like twenty levels higher than you guys. Why would you want me?"

Part of me told me to just lie and tell them I was the same level that they were. But I couldn't do it, so I decided to be honest. They all gasped. I looked back up at them.

"What?" I asked with confusion.

"Of course, we would want you Kirito, Sir!" Keita said.

I grimaced at him calling me "Sir".

"Keita, I'm not you're superior." I said. "And why would you want a high level player like me?"

"Kirito, why wouldn't you want to travel with us?" Keita asked. "You would be an inspiration! We could look up to you!"

I regarded him with a strange look.

"Keita, seriously. How am I an inspiration?" I asked. "I'm a solo player. Why would you guys want to look up to me? There's nothing that great about me. I'm more of a loner, so I'm sorry, but joining a Guild isn't my style. I don't think that you could look up to me."

"Kirito, just think about it for a second! You may not think that you'd belong in a Guild, but we can prove you wrong!" he said.

"Huh?" I asked with confusion.

"Kirito, hear me out! You don't have to travel alone anymore!" he said. "You know so much and we're good, but we're not that good! You could teach us all of what you know! You could teach us how to really survive in this game!"

It was at that moment that I realized Keita may have known what he was talking about. But even still, I was skeptical of the idea of running with a Guild.

"I don't know." I said at last. "It's just been a long time since I've ran with other players."

Keita put his hands together in an attempt to beg.

"Please?" he asked.

"I don't know." I repeated.

"Oh, come on, please?" Keita asked. "Please, please, please, please?"

I looked up at everyone, to see that all of the Guild's members were giving me looks of encouragement. I guess they weren't going to take no for an answer. I sighed.

"Alright, you got me." I said. "If you really think that you could learn something from me and that I could be useful, I'll join you guys. I'll do it."

Keita and Sachi both had surprised and joyous looks on their faces. After that, they began to gather around me and a chorus of their greetings erupted around me. I'll be honest, all of the attention made me slightly uncomfortable.

 _May 9_ _th_ _, 2023 – Twentieth Floor: Sunlit Forest_

About a month had passed since I had joined the Moonlit Black Cats. Right now, the Guild and I were combatting a giant, Six-Legged Mantis in the Sunlit Forest. The Mantis struck Sachi's shield, causing her to freak out.

"Sachi, step out of the way and let the rest of us handle this!" I said as I drew my sword. "If anything happens, jump in to cover us!"

Just as I was distracted by barking an order to Sachi, the Mantis saw a chance to try to get me and it took it. It attempted to stab at me with its pincer and I managed to turn seconds before I was impaled, and I sliced the top part of its limb off. The limb went flying and once it hit the ground, exploded into several hundred glittering glass shards.

"Tetsuo, fall in with me!" I exclaimed as I continued to combat the Mantis.

"Got it!" he exclaimed as he moved in.

He moved in and attacked the Mantis' leg, while I kept its attention away from him. I slashed my sword across its torso, as Tetsuo severed one of its legs from the rest of the body. That was the last blow that we needed. Once the Mantis had dissolved into thousands of glass shards, Tetsuo received the final blow message, gaining the bonus XP for his accomplishment. Tetsuo threw his arms up into the air and let out a cheer, as the two of our other members approached.

"Congrats man!" one of them said.

"You did it!" the other said.

"No." I said interrupting their celebration.

The three of them turned to looked at me with confusion. A smile formed on my face as they looked back at me.

" _We_ did it." I said, the smile still on my face. "We did it together. Good job, guys."

They continued to look at me with confusion, before the looks were replaced with happier looks. They all let out cheers of excitement, as the celebration continued. I smiled as one or two of them clapped me on the shoulder and then went to go celebrate amongst themselves. At this moment, for once, it felt nice to be with a Guild. And that feeling was a rarity to me.

 _Later That Day_

Later in the day, Keita and I sat in the grass together, eating our lunch. As I sat there eating my lunch, Keita read from a newspaper that he had purchased not too long ago.

"The Assault Team made it through to Floor 28. That's amazing!" Keita read from the newspaper. "Hey, Kirito. What the heck does the Assault Team have that we don't?"

I turned to look at him.

"Well, access to information?" I asked. "With that, they can find the easiest ways to get XP, and they don't share that info."

Keita let out a sigh as he put the newspaper aside.

"Yeah, you're probably right." He said as he crossed his arms and continued to lay there. "But I think what really sets them apart is willpower."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Keita sat up.

"I guess what I mean is they have the will to stick up for their friends. Or any player, for that matter." He said, before turning to face me. "Truth is, I think we have that same kind of drive. Even though we still need the protection."

I gave him a strange look.

"Don't think about that." I said at last.

Keita looked back at me with a strange look.

"What?" he asked.

I chuckled as he looked back at me.

"Keita, I'm in your Guild now. I've been teaching you all everything that I know." I said. "One day, you won't have to worry about protection, because we'll be able to protect ourselves. Just think about it, Keita. With me teaching you all everything that I've learned, you won't have much to worry about one day."

Keita looked down for a few seconds.

"You're right. I shouldn't think like that." He said. "I'm sorry."

I chuckled once again.

"You don't have to apologize." I said. "I know what you're going through. I went through that phase once, myself."

"Yeah, I suppose you did." Keita replied.

One of our Guild members, Ducker jumped down.

"Hey, leader!" he said as he put Keita into a chokehold. "Give me some love!"

"Hey, come on!" Keita exclaimed. "Cut it out, man!"

As Ducker held Keita in a chokehold, Tetsuo, Sachi and Sasamaru jumped down and walked over to us.

"You really think that we can be as strong as the Holy Dragon Alliance or The Knights of the Blood Oath?" the Tetsuo asked.

I turned to look at him.

"Of course, I do." I said. "As I told Keita, one day we won't have to worry about protection. With everything I've been teaching you guys, one day our strength will match the strength of a group like that!"

"It might take a while," Keita chimed in. "But at least we have a goal!"

"It might take a while?" Ducker asked. "We have to be level 30 first if we want to join!"

"That's impossible!" Sachi said.

I let out a sigh as I looked at the ground. It seemed that even after the time I had spent in their Guild, Sachi was still not confident of our and even her abilities. But there was one thing to think about.

 _If I could help the Black Cats level up fast and get to the front lines, Keita's ideals could help change the entire atmosphere of the Assault Teams._

 _Later That Evening_

"I have an announcement." Keita spoke.

Later that night, we had all retired back to the Inn that we all stayed in. We all met in one of the rooms that we had reserved, so Keita could call a meeting.

"After our latest hunt in the field, we've got 200,000 Col!" he said with a smile on his face.

Everyone in the room, except for myself, gasped with excitement. See, Col was the currency of Sword Art Online. And obviously, having a lot of Col was a good thing. And that's basically what Keita had just said; we had a lot of Col.

"Buying a house of our own doesn't seem like such a pipe dream anymore!" Tetsuo chimed in.

"Hey, I know!" Sasamaru spoke. "We should upgrade Sachi's equipment!"

"Good idea."

Sachi let out a grunt of displeasure as she shook her head.

"I'm fine with what I have." She said.

"Oh, come on!" Sasamaru replied. "It's not fair to make Kirito take the front forever!"

Sachi looked at me with sympathy after he said that.

"I'm sorry." She said.

I chuckled as I looked back at her.

"Oh, don't worry about me." I said. "I used to run the front lines all by myself back when I was still a solo player. Doing it now is almost no different than how I had used to do things."

"Thanks, Kirito." Keita replied before Sachi could respond, then looking at the girl in question. "Sachi, I know switching jobs isn't easy. But seriously, you're almost there! You can do it, I know it!"

That didn't help change Sachi's current mood.

"Yeah." She said at last, before looking down at the floor.

 _May 16_ _th_ _, 2023 – Twenty Eighth Floor: Wolf Plains_

I walked through the Wolf Plains, looking for some wolves that weren't in the middle of combat. I came over a rise and stopped when I saw two familiar players fighting wolves in the valley below. It was Klein and Asuna. Klein was wearing his usual get up, while Asuna was wearing the same red and white tunic, with a skirt and white stockings. It looked like Asuna was herding the wolf towards Klein, that way he'd be able to go in for the kill.

"I'm going to drive him your way!" Asuna exclaimed, loud enough so that I heard her. "When I do, you go in for the kill!"

That confirmed it.

"Okay!" Klein yelled back. "Go!"

I watched as they worked together to kill the wolf. I realized a minute or so later, that I had been standing there watching them. I decided it was time for me to go, before they noticed me. Too late. Once they had killed the wolf, Klein looked in my direction. He called out to me, but I didn't respond. He looked over at Asuna and muttered something I couldn't hear. I took that time to turn around and begin walking away. I thought I had gotten away, but that's when I heard the footsteps hurrying to catch up with me not even a minute later.

"Hey, bro!" he called behind me. "Wait up!"

I let out a sigh and stopped in my tracks. I turned back to face them. Klein beamed me a smile once he realized it was me. Asuna had an unsure look on her face, but eventually she smiled at me like Klein was.

"What's up, man?" he asked with enthusiasm, sticking his fist out.

Klein was going for a fist bump, but I just hesitantly stared down at his fist. I decided not to give him that fist bump and then I took a step back away from them. Klein's smile melted from his face and he may have said something, but Asuna beat him to it.

"Hey, Kirito!" she said in a cheery voice, pronouncing my name as "Curry-Toe". "How've you been?"

I stared back at them, before I sighed and finally spoke.

"You said my name wrong. It's Kirito, okay?" I asked, pronouncing it correctly. "Say it with me. "Cure-ee-toe". See how easy that is? Kirito."

The smile disappeared from Asuna's face, replaced with a frown.

 _Great,_ I thought. _I managed to tick her off._

"Okay, okay, I get it. You don't have to be a jerk about it, though." She said, still frowning. "What are you doing out here so late? Are you doing some late night leveling or… hey, what's that icon?"

I realized that they must have seen the icon that appears above the HP bar, signifying that the player is a part of a Guild. The player in this sense being me.

"You're part of a Guild?" Klein asked with confusion. " _You_ joined a Guild?"

Asuna chimed in.

"What was all of that talk, telling me that I should consider travelling with people," she asked. "Just for you to go off on your own and join a Guild? Why have that talk, just for you to abandon us?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down there, Asuna!" Klein said as he looked at her. "He never abandoned us!"

Asuna looked back angrily at Klein.

"No, he did abandon us!" she said.

"But he wished us well on our way!" Klein exclaimed. "Doesn't that count for something?"

"That coming from the guy who cried when he left." She said.

Klein looked offended to what Asuna said.

"Hey, I wasn't crying!" Klein exclaimed. "My eyes were just watering!"

"Hey, that's okay. Eyes water." She said. "You know what it's called when they do that? Crying!"

I cleared my throat, causing both of them to look back at me.

"What happened to me telling you guys to go your own way?" I asked. "That I'd find my own way around?"

Asuna looked at me with an annoyed look.

"What?" I asked.

"Kirito," Asuna spoke, pronouncing my name correctly this time. "that's not good enough."

A look of surprise came onto my face.

"Oh, um, sorry?"

"Sorry?" Asuna asked. "Sorry"? Is that all you have to say?"

"What else would you want me to say?" I asked.

Before Asuna could say anything else, Klein spoke up.

"It's okay, Kirito." He said. "We're just surprised to see you, that's all."

"Yeah." I said. "I'm surprised to see you guys, too. I see you took my advice. You've been traveling together, I assume. Have you been teaching her everything I taught you, Klein?"

"Of course, I have." He said with a grin. "I'm not going to lose this one as easily as I lost you."

Another look of surprise came onto my face before I spoke.

"You never lost me." I said in a low voice. "I just decided to go off on my own."

"You abandoned us!" Asuna blurted out with anger, before slapping her hands over her mouth with shock, as if she didn't mean to say that.

I just stared at her.

"I'm sorry." She said at last, removing her hands from her mouth. "I didn't mean for that to sound so rude!"

"It's okay." I said.

Asuna regained the unhappy look that had been on her face just a few seconds ago.

"But seriously, what was the point of giving me that talk about being able to rely on others," she asked. "Just for you to disband the party and go off on your own?"

I let out a sigh.

"Why would you want to travel with a beater like me?" I asked.

Asuna looked offended.

"Hey, that's not fair!" she said. "We would have come with you, if you just had asked!"

I chuckled.

"Oh, really?" I asked.

Asuna and Klein both went silent after that.

"So, if you went off on your own," Asuna asked. "Then why are you in a Guild? If you are in a Guild, that is."

I sighed once more.

"Yeah, I'm in a Guild. You probably haven't heard of them, though." I said. "They're called the Moonlit Black Cats. And they put me into a position where I couldn't say no."

Asuna and Klein said nothing still. There was an awkward silence between all three of us now. I looked down at the ground, not feeling like standing here and talking to them anymore.

"Well," I said as I took a step back. "Been nice seeing you guys."

I turned around and began to walk away.

"Kirito, wait!" Asuna blurted out from behind me, still pronouncing my name correctly.

I stopped in my tracks.

"Take care of yourself!" she finished her sentence.

I didn't move.

"You, too." I said loud enough for them to hear.

I started walking down the summit again. I stopped once again and looked back. I saw Klein and Asuna arguing with each other, about what, I didn't know. Then, out of the corner of her eye, Asuna noticed me looking back at them. She gave me the same look of anger she had given me the day I departed from them. The look she gave me unnerved me a little, but I turned back and kept walking nonetheless.

 _Sometime Later_

I teleported back into the town that the Moonlit Black Cats and I were staying in. I was about to proceed to the Inn, when a message showed up in my inbox. I opened the message and saw that it was from Keita. I began to read:

 _It's Keita. Sachi went off somewhere and hasn't come back yet. We're heading to the dungeon now. Please let me know if you find anything out._

I closed the message after I finished reading.

"Sachi…" I murmured to myself.

 _It wasn't like Sachi to go off all by herself,_ I thought. _Usually, she's always with someone. But she's out by herself now? What could she possibly be doing?_

I opened my friends list, clicked on her name and then began tracking her position. My eyes lit up and I began to see with a light green glow. My vision travelled to a nearby alley, where I saw a trail of her footsteps. I disabled the position tracker and took off in the direction of the footsteps.

I ran for a few minutes, until I came to a bridge that went over a shallow river in the city. I walked down the stairs to the small sidewalk that ran along the "bank" of the river. I kept walking, until I rounded a corner. I walked some more, until I saw a figure sitting in the shadows.

"Sachi?" I cautiously called her name.

The figure looked up at me.

"Kirito?" the figure called back.

It was Sachi's voice. I stopped in my tracks and looked at her.

"Everyone's worried about you." I said.

Sachi let out a sigh and looked away. I began walking towards her again and eventually sat down a few feet from her and leaned my back up against the wall.

"Hey, Kirito…" Sachi said my name.

"Yeah?" I said back.

"We should run away." She said in a shaky voice.

"Run away?" I asked. "From what?"

"From this town, from the monsters… From the Moonlit Black Cats. And from Sword Art Online, too."

I let out a gasp of surprise, my eyes widening as I looked back at her.

"A-Are you talking about suicide?" I asked with a shaky voice.

Sachi chuckled.

"That's not such a bad idea." She said.

I let out another gasp.

"Sorry, no. If I had the guts to die, I wouldn't be hiding in town where it's safe, would I?"

I let out a nervous chuckle.

"But really, why can't we just leave?"

I was confused.

"Why do we have to die, when it's just a stupid game? What's the point of going through this?"

Sachi was making some sense, I guess. I looked away from here.

"Yeah, there is no point, I guess."

Sachi said nothing and we just stared down at the calm waters of the river in front of us.

"I'm so afraid of dying in here!" she spoke at last.

My eyes widened with shock, again.

"It's really that bad for you, huh?" I finally asked.

Sachi shuddered next to me and it sounded like she was going to cry.

"I'm so scared, I haven't been able to sleep lately."

"You're not going to die."

Sachi let out a light gasp and I could sense her beginning to look at me.

"Really? How can you be so sure about it?"

"We're strong enough as a Guild. We _are_ a Guild. Besides, our margin of safety is well above the average level. Plus, you'll always have Tetsuo and me watching your back. It'd be nice if you switched to the front lines, but truth be told, there's no real reason for you to switch with me and Tetsuo on the front lines."

A bright look appeared on Sachi's face.

"You honestly don't think I'll die? Will I make it back to the real world?"

"Yeah. We all will. You're not going to die. I promise. You'll see, we'll clear this game and go home soon."

Sachi straightened up a little and she looked at me with surprise. A small smile eventually appeared on her face, as a tear rolled down her cheek.

 _Later That Night_

I sat in my room in the Inn, going through my inventory and just generally brushing up on a few things before I turned in for the night. That's when I heard a knock at my door. I looked back at the door.

"Come in." I said.

The door opened and Sachi walked in, wearing a long, white night gown and holding a pillow.

"I'm sorry." She said with a look of embarrassment in her eyes. "I can't seem to get to sleep."

I looked back at her with surprise.

 _Later That Night_

A few hours had passed and Sachi was finally asleep. We laid in the same bed, with our backs to each other. She wasn't the only one who was embarrassed by it. I was very nervous when it came to sharing my bed with a girl. I was still wide awake, and I didn't think I'd be getting to sleep anytime soon. I was still in awe regarding the talk I had had with Sachi earlier that evening.

 _If I stay with the Moonlit Black Cats, she will, too. And on that note, she'll be safe,_ I thought to myself. _And we'll all make it back to the real world one day. There must be a lot of players like her, who fear dying in here. But still, they laugh and cry and try the best they can. I never even thought about it._

"Kirito?" Sachi asked from her side of the bed.

Well, I thought that she had been asleep. I rolled over to face her, and I smiled.

"It's okay. I promise you'll survive." I said as she rolled over to face me.

She let out a small gasp, before a small smile appeared on her face. She closed her eyes, before rubbing her head against her pillow, then she didn't move anymore. I watched her as she remained like that.

 _And no matter what, I promise I'll protect all of you._

 _June 12_ _th_ _, 2023 – Eleventh Floor: Taft_

"Okay, I'm heading out." Keita said to us, before turning away. "Teleport: Town of Beginnings."

And with that, Keita disappeared into a blue light. Roughly a month had passed since that night. The Moonlit Black Cats and I had been training harder, earning more Col and all of that good stuff. Eventually the day finally came. In total, all of us had made enough money that we could all buy a house together. And so, that's what Keita was heading out to do.

"Can you believe it?" the Sasamaru asked. "I didn't know buying a house would be so exciting!"

"Dude, you sound like an old man!" Ducker replied as he poked Sasamaru.

They all laughed after that, while I just chuckled.

"Hey, while Keita's out buying the house," Tetsuo spoke. "What do you guys say we go out and raise some extra cash?"

Sachi smiled and spoke up.

"Oh! Then we can buy furniture!" she said.

"Come on, let's go to a dungeon on a higher floor!" Ducker spoke up next.

I looked at him and spoke up myself.

"No, that's not a good idea. We should stick to our usual hunting grounds. You guys aren't ready for a higher level dungeon."

They all turned to look at me.

"But up there, we can make more and faster!" Sasamaru said.

"Yeah!" Ducker chimed in. "And at our levels, we'll have nothing to worry about!"

"No, you guys aren't ready yet!" I insisted. "We need to stick to our usual hunting grounds until you guys are more experienced! Just trust me on this!"

"Oh, come on, Kirito!" Sasamaru said. "If we have you with us, we could accomplish anything! You know all the ins and outs of dungeon clearing! All you would need to do is give us some pointers!"

"No!" I insisted.

"Oh, come on!" Ducker said. "Please?"

I looked at all of them. They all gave me pleading looks. And so, I finally gave in.

"Fine." I said. "But if we're going to do this, we're going to do it my way. You guys are to do whatever I tell you, when I tell you. No disobeying me, you got me?"

They all nodded without hesitation. I let out a sigh.

"Okay." I said. "Let's do it."

They all cheered, knowing that they had bested me and that made me shudder.

 _What had I just gotten myself into?_

 _Twenty Seventh Floor: Dungeon_

"You see?" the Ducker asked as we walked back through the path out of the dungeon. "I told you this would be cake!"

"We might reach the front lines sooner!" Sasamaru chimed in.

"That's what I'm talking about! Look!"

He walked up to a spot on the wall that had a symbol on it and cautiously put his hand on the wall. The wall then revealed that it had been a secret door.

 _No way!_ _A hidden door?_

Ducker opened the door all the way. He was about to step inside, when I grabbed the back of his cloak, restricting his movement. He turned around to look at me with shock, as did the rest of the Guild.

"Hey, what gives, Kirito?" he asked as he tried to push my hand off his shoulder.

"Just hold a minute, will you?" I asked as I let go of him. "Look, I get it. I'm just as excited as you guys are. But this could be a trap. At least let me go first?"

He looked back at me with pleading eyes.

"But…" he began to speak, but I interrupted him.

"No buts!" I said. "Remember what I said? No disobeying me! Let me go first and determine that it's safe for you guys!"

He looked back at me with a pouty look, but eventually nodded.

"Okay, thank you." I said as I pulled my sword from its sheath. "Now, you guys stay put and wait for me to give you the all clear!"

They all acknowledged my order and stayed back while I cautiously stepped foot into the secret room. No monsters spawned in right away, but that didn't make me feel better. This smelled like an ambush. I moved in further and noticed the treasure chest that was sitting in the middle of the room. Seeing that it was the only thing in the room, my bad feeling became worse.

"Okay, the room's completely empty. There's nothing but a treasure chest in here." I called out. "But I have a bad feeling. I think that it's best if we just move on."

But after I said that, someone dashed past me. They had gotten past me so quickly, that it took me a second to realize what had just happened. I turned around to see Ducker kneeling by the treasure chest, getting ready to open it.

"Ducker, what are you doing?!" I exclaimed. "I told you that I think we should just move on!"

At this point, the rest of the Guild came into the room, I guess following his lead.

"No! We have to leave now!" I said. "I don't like the vibes that this room is giving me!"

Ducker looked back at me with confusion.

"Oh, come on, Kirito. What could be so dangerous about one treasure chest?" he asked, before opening it without a second thought.

As soon as he opened it, an alarm started to blare, and the shade of the room turned from blue to red. I looked all around us, as the door to the room slammed shut. I was right. We had walked right into a trap. Sachi began to shudder next to me with fear, as several enemies began to spawn into the room.

"It's a trap!" I exclaimed.

"Let's get out of here!" Ducker said as he took out his teleport crystal and held it up to the ceiling. "Teleport: Taft!"

He freaked out once he realized that it didn't work, but tried again.

"Teleport: Taft!"

"Our teleport crystals won't work?" Sachi asked with fear.

"The walls must be interfering with the signal!" I said.

I watched as the enemies began to surround us.

"Everyone, get behind me!" I exclaimed. "I got us into this, I'll get us out of this!"

While that wasn't technically true, as Ducker had opened the treasure chest, I had said that it was okay to take a look, so in that sense, I felt guilty. Everyone obeyed and got behind me and took their positions to help fend off the horde of enemies that was approaching. I waited for my chance and once I saw it, I yelled as I sprang forward, and sunk my sword into an enemy.

 _Ten Minutes Later_

Ducker was the first to go. Tetsuo followed not too soon after that. Sasamaru tried to put up a good fight but was quickly killed. That left only Sachi and I. I managed to fight them all off. And at the same time, I don't know how, but I managed to get both myself and Sachi out of the room.

I was mildly hurt, while Sachi was close to death. Like I said, I don't know how I managed to do it, but I had managed to get Sachi out before she was able to be killed. I had kept my promise. Well, at least part of it, anyway. I had ensured that Sachi would survive, but on the other hand, everyone else perished. I couldn't help but feel incredibly guilty, with Sachi's arm around me as I helped her walk away from the room.

"Don't look back, Sachi." I said as I did just that, looking back with guilt at the door to the room. "Don't look back."

 _That Night_

Sachi and I stayed in the same room in the Inn that night. She laid on the bed while I sat up, rocking myself as I played the events of that day again in my head, over and over.

"Kirito?" Sachi finally spoke.

"Huh?" I asked as I looked in her direction, coming out of my trance.

"Hold me!" she exclaimed as she threw herself into my arms, which surprised me to say the least.

I was surprised, but I eventually put my arms around her as she buried her face in my chest and began to cry again. I let out a sigh as I patted her back.

"I'm sorry, Sachi." I said at last.

"No." she said, although with her face against my chest, it muffled her voice. "No talking. Just hold me."

I didn't exactly obey.

"It was my fault, Sachi." I said. "I could have saved them all. _I_ should have died in there. You guys all should have made it out."

Sachi looked up at me.

"Don't even say that!" she said, her eyes puffy from crying. "You got _me_ out. Doesn't that say something? I'm still alive and it's all thanks to you!"

She was right. Despite how hard I had tried to keep _all of them_ alive, I was able to keep her alive, just as I had promised her.

"Oh, God." I said as I looked down, shuddering as I did.

"What is it?" Sachi asked.

"Keita… What am I going to tell Keita?" I asked. "I'll have to explain this to him tomorrow!"

"Do you want me to go with you?" she asked.

"No." I shook my head. "We've both been through trauma, but this is on me. This is my fault. Not only did I let all of you down, I let Keita down. I have to face the music."

"It wasn't your fault, Kirito." Sachi said to me.

I said nothing in return. And so, for the rest of the night we sat together in silence.

 _Past Midnight_

I sat on the edge of the bed, while Sachi slept next to me. I didn't think I would be doing much sleeping tonight, there was just too much on my mind. I turned back to look at Sachi's sleeping form. I reached my hand over and ever so gently flicked a few strands of hair out of her face.

"I may have not been able to protect the rest of the Guild, but I promise that no matter what, I _will_ protect you, Sachi." I whispered. "Now that we're the only ones left, I will take care of you. I will make sure that you see the real world again. I cross my heart and hope to die."

Sachi shifted in her sleep and gripped her pillow tighter, but she didn't wake up. I let out a sigh as I turned back away from Sachi. I bent over towards the floor and held my head in my hands.

 _What am I going to do?_

 _December 24_ _th_ _, 2023 – Forty Ninth Floor: Mugien_

Several months had passed since that day. Sachi and I walked together through the town of Mugien, on the Forty Ninth Floor of Aincrad. The Moonlit Black Cats had pretty much broken up. As for what happened to Keita? Well, Sachi and I both don't like talking about it. So, that's pretty much the end of that conversation.

These days, Sachi and I didn't do a lot of monster hunting. And when we did, we either relied on each other for information, or we would pay various info brokers to tell us what we needed to know. And tonight was one of those occasions. Sachi and I stopped to sit down on a bench and eventually, a player in a cloak stopped behind the bench, with their back turned to us. Eventually after a minute or so, the player spoke.

"I hear someone's been taking risks with their level raising." They said at last.

I let out a sigh.

"Do you have any new info for us, or what?" I asked with impatience.

"Nothing worth charging you money for." She said.

Sachi herself let out an angry sigh.

"Are you going to talk or not?" she asked.

The info broker looked back, before giving in.

"This is a first time event. Some time tonight, on Christmas Eve, an event boss called "Nicholas the Renegade" will appear." The info broker spoke. "Under a fir tree somewhere. The major Guilds are searching everywhere for it, so I would say that you two don't stand a chance."

I let out a huff as I stood up, Sachi following closely. The info broker looked back.

"You wouldn't happen to know where, would you?" she asked.

"Maybe." I said, before I walked off with Sachi.

She called something after us, but I didn't hear what she said. I continued walking with Sachi at my side, until we came to an alley. I walked off into that alley and she followed. Once we were halfway down the alley, I stopped walking. And so did Sachi, stopping about a few feet behind me.

"Kirito?" she asked with fear.

I turned around to face her.

"What was that just now? You've seemed to be a bit impatient lately." I said. "May I ask what that's been about?"

Sachi looked down.

"I just can't handle the breaks anymore." She said. "I've got to get back out there. Kirito, I want to start fighting monsters again."

I sighed.

"Okay, then we can go back to our usual hunting grounds." I said. "We can start grinding for XP just like old times and…"

"No! I don't want to go back to our usual hunting grounds!" Sachi said. "I want to go somewhere a little higher leveled!"

"No, Sachi!" I said. "You're not ready! You need to gain more experience before you go up against tougher fights! I can't allow you to go up against tougher foes! Not after…"

"Don't say it." Sachi said. "Not after The Moonlit Black Cats, right?"

I sighed.

"Sachi, you're just not ready." I said. "You need more experience before I allow you to fight tougher fights."

"How will I get more experience if you won't let me try?" she asked with irritation. "If you would just let me try, I could prove you wrong!"

I narrowed my eyes.

"You let me decide that." I said as I walked past her. "Come on, let's go. We have work to do."

I walked out of the alley before Sachi could say another word. In this world, the dead can never return to life. However, I had heard a rumor recently, something that I had been keeping from Sachi. The rumor goes as such: If you can beat Nicholas the Renegade, then he would drop an item that could revive a dead player. Or, with hope, an item that could revive several dead players.

That's why I wanted to defeat this boss so badly. Because if I could defeat him, then maybe I could revive one of, if not all of the members of The Moonlit Black Cats. If I could do it, then maybe, just maybe, would I be able to right my wrongs? I could only hope.

 _June 13_ _th_ _, 2023 – Eleventh Floor: Taft_

"Kirito, are you okay?" Keita asked. "You don't look so good!"

I looked up at him, shivering as I did. Seeing me shiver must have worried him, because his smile melted from his face.

"Kirito, you're shivering." Keita observed with a worried look on his face. "What's wrong? Hey, where's the Black Cats?"

I looked down with guilt, as I continued to shiver.

"Kirito?" Keita asked with caution. "You're freaking me out, dude!"

I finally worked up the courage to look up at him and speak.

"The Guild and I decided to go out to get some extra money, so we could buy furniture once you bought the house." I said. "We all came across a secret room on the Twenty Second Floor's Dungeon. Ducker insisted that we explore it. I tried to warn them that it might have been a trap, I tried to tell them that we should just move on, but Ducker and the rest wouldn't listen. I tried to defend all of us when the trap was sprung, but Ducker was the first to go, followed by Tetsuo and then Sasamaru. Sachi and I were the only ones who got out."

Keita just looked back at me with shock.

"What?" he finally asked with disbelief.

I looked back down at the ground, not wanting to look him in the eye.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what else to say. I tried to do something, but none of them would listen." I said. "I just wasn't good enough. It's my fault that they're all dead."

Keita said nothing.

"Keita, I understand if you hate me for this. I can understand that." I said without looking up. "But please, don't leave Sachi and I behind. We still need your guidance. I'll never be able forgive myself for my mistake, but don't abandon us. We are nothing without you."

Keita said nothing still.

"Keita?" I asked. "I know that you may hate me now, but talk to me!"

I finally looked up and the sight that I saw shocked me. Keita had climbed up onto the stone balcony that overlooked the world outside of Aincrad.

"Keita!" I exclaimed with shock. "What are you doing?!"

Keita didn't budge from his spot. I cautiously stepped closer and Keita turned his head to look at me.

"Kirito…" he said loud enough for me to hear.

I stared back at him, waiting for him to finish what he had to say.

"Take care of Sachi." He said.

I gasped with shock as he said that.

 _What? What did he mean by that?_

Keita turned away from me again and looked out at the sky. It all happened so fast. Keita stepped off the balcony and fell. I had run over to try to stop him, but I was too late. Far too late. I looked over the edge of the balcony, but saw nothing.

"Keita!" I called out.

That's when I saw the thousands of glittering pieces of glass that used to be Keita shatter against the sky barrier below us. I stared down, as my eyes stung with tears. I backed up away from the edge of the balcony and fell back onto my behind.

 _Why? Why had Keita chosen to kill himself, even though I told him that Sachi was still alive?_

I had failed. I promised that I'd keep them all safe and in less then a day, they were all dead, except for Sachi. What had I done wrong? Could this have gone any other way? Could I have convinced Keita to stay with us?

It was only later that I realized something. I should have been firmer with them, I should have been sterner. If I had done that, then maybe I could have made them listen to me. Maybe they'd still be alive if I had done that. I would live the rest of my life in guilt. Because to me, I had singlehandedly killed an entire Guild. I would have to live the rest of my life with their deaths on my conscience.

 _December 24_ _th_ _, 2023 – Thirty Fifth Floor: Forest Maze_

Sachi and I walked through the snowy forest.

 _If I can defeat Nicholas, then I can revive the Moonlit Black Cats,_ I thought. _Then I can right my wrongs._

I looked up at the giant Fir tree we were heading towards. Sachi looked at me and I nodded at her. We began running side by side through the portal to the other side of the forest. We emerged on the other side and kept running until a group of players teleported onto our position. I recognized two of the players. They were Klein and Asuna. Klein wore his usual get up, with the addition of a few armor plates and fur lined clothing, while Asuna was wearing another brown cloak, similar to the one she had worn when Klein and I had first met her. Klein smiled and was the first to speak.

"Sup?" he asked.

"You followed me here, didn't you?" I asked.

"Of course." Klein said as he and Asuna stepped forward. "You're after the revival item, aren't you?"

"Yeah." I said as I straightened up. "But to be fair, who isn't?"

"Okay, fair enough." Klein said. "You're right."

"Kirito," Sachi finally spoke from behind me with fear as she poked her head out to look at my old friends. "Who are these people?"

That's when Klein and Asuna noticed Sachi for the first time. Asuna gave her a strange look, while Klein grinned at me.

"Who's this you have with you, Kirito?" he asked as he wiggled his eyebrows up and down. "Have you gotten yourself a girlfriend?"

I blushed and Sachi was no doubt probably blushing as well.

"As if it's like that." I said. "No, I suppose I owe an explanation to all three of you. Sachi, this is Klein and Asuna, they're old friends of mine. We used to run together."

"For like a day." Asuna spoke at last, with a notable amount of irritation in her voice.

"Nice to see you again too, Asuna." I said as I took her hand in mine, which surprised her.

Eventually, she got over her surprise and she shook my hand as I had intended. Once we let go of each other's hands, I introduced them to Sachi.

"Klein, Asuna, this is Sachi." I said as I stepped to my left, putting Sachi into the spotlight. "She's my friend, and my companion. We used to run together in the same Guild."

"Hi." Sachi said with an understandable degree of shyness, waving at them as she did.

"Go on, Sachi." I said. "They don't bite."

Klein grinned as he stepped forward.

"He's right." He said as he stuck out his hand. "Besides, it's always nice to see a new, friendly face."

Sachi eventually took Klein's hand and they shook. She eventually did the same and shook hands with Asuna. Asuna looked at both of us strangely.

"You said that you guys "used" to run in the same Guild." She said. "What does that mean?"

"Yeah, what Guild did you say it was?" Klein asked, putting his hand on his chin. "The Blacklit Moon Cats or something? Right?"

"You actually have it the other way around." Sachi spoke. "We were actually called "The Moonlit Black Cats"."

"Why do you keep speaking in past tense?" Asuna asked. "What's going on?"

My face darkened, which seemed to be off-putting to Klein and Asuna.

"Sachi and I don't like talking about it." I said.

Klein and Asuna glanced nervously at each other, before Klein looked back at me and spoke again.

"Anyway, back to the revival item…" he said.

"Listen to me for a second, Kirito. You shouldn't go risking your or Sachi's life for something that doesn't exist." Asuna finished for him. "It's nothing but a bogus rumor, that's what it is!"

"You're just saying that!" I argued. "You just want to get to it first!"

Asuna looked angry now.

"No, Kirito, I'm not!" she said angrily. "What proof do you have that such an item exists? Come on, I mean, we both know that there's no way to revive dead players in SAO!"

"She's right." Klein chimed in. "You can't be messing around in this death game."

I didn't budge from where I was standing.

"Once your HP hits zero, that's it." Klein continued. "In the real world, your brain gets…"

"Shut up." I interjected, surprising both of them.

No one said anything for about a minute.

"Look, I understand if you don't think it's real." I said at last as I looked up to them. "But I think it's real and I want to get it. And I'm sure as hell not going to let you two stop me. I wouldn't expect you to understand, either."

"We're just trying to get you to stop with all you're stupid soloing!" Asuna angrily blurted out.

"Did you forget? I'm partnered with Sachi." I said. "You could call it "duoing"."

"Alright, then just join up with us!" Klein said. "Several has got to be better than two! And hey, if the revival item does exist and someone other than you gets it, no hard feelings."

Sachi's face lit up next to me.

"Oh, thank you! We…" she began to speak, but I interrupted.

"Yeah, thanks, but no thanks. We appreciate the offer." I said. "But we're going to have to refuse. It doesn't feel right to make you have to depend on and help protect someone you don't even know, right?"

Klein looked back at me with shock, obviously he recognized the words to be similar to those he had said to me the day we met. I unsheathed my sword.

"Besides, this is something I have to do. Like I said, I don't expect you to understand."

"Damn it, Kirito!" Asuna said. "Think about what you're doing! You are sentencing yourselves to suicide and we can't let you do that!"

"I already told you, I won't let you stand in my way."

Before anyone could say anything else, a bunch of other players teleported into the clearing with us. We all formed a group as they began to surround us.

"I guess you guys were followed, too." I said.

"It appears to be that way." Asuna replied as she unsheathed her rapier.

"It's the Holy Dragon Alliance!" one of their group members said. "They'll do anything for a rare item, no matter how shady!"

"What do we do?" another asked.

 _You bastards,_ I thought to myself.

"Screw these guys!" Klein said as he drew his sword. "Get out of here, Kirito! You too, Sachi!"

"No way!" I said.

"We'll hold 'em off, just get going!" Asuna exclaimed.

I realized there was no point in arguing.

"Alright. I'm going to leave Sachi with you!" I said. "Make sure she stays safe!"

Sachi looked back at me with surprise, as did Asuna.

"No!" Sachi said as she ran over to me. "I'm coming with you!"

"No." I said as I smiled sadly. "I'm not going to lose you because I mess up. I can't go through that again."

"Don't say that!" she said. "I want to go with you! I can show you that I'm capable of holding my own in a fight! Why won't you just let me show you?!"

"No. If I make it back, I'll consider allowing you to fight tougher fights." I said as I put my hand on her cheek. "Besides, it's not your time! If I die, I don't want my death to mean your death. Besides, if what we've heard about Nicholas the Renegade is true, you're safer staying with them than you would be if you came with me!"

"I won't take no for an answer, Kirito!" Sachi said as her face began to grow red. "I'm coming with you!"

"No. We don't have time to argue, Sachi." I said. "Stay with them. You'll be safe, I promise."

I turned around and began to run towards the portal.

"No, Kirito! Don't do this!" Sachi called from behind me. "This is suicide!"

I didn't listen. I ran through the portal and emerged in the arena. I walked up to the giant Fir tree, just as bells began to ring. I looked up above to see two sets of smoke trails in the sky. And from the trails, dropped a giant boss. As he landed in front of me, the wind picked up, along with the snow being kicked up. I used my arms to block the snow and wind from getting into my face. The giant boss, wearing a pale red coat, stood up straighter and four health bars appeared next to his head, along with the nametag that said, "Nicholas the Renegade". I got my sword ready.

"Let's do this." I said.

Nicholas got ready to attack and as he did, I charged him, yelling as I ran.

 _Sometime Later_

I reappeared back in the clearing and was immediately charged by Sachi.

"Kirito!" she exclaimed as she ran to me. "You're alive!"

Once she got to me, she threw her arms around me and hugged herself against me.

"Promise me that you'll never, ever, ever do something stupid like that again!" she said as she continued to hug me.

I didn't say anything and that seemed to worry Sachi. She pulled away from the hug and looked at me with worry.

"Kirito, what is it? Is something wrong?"

I stared down at her but said nothing. Eventually I walked past her and over to Klein and Asuna, leaving her in a state of confusion. He looked up at me with confusion once I reached him. I threw the spherical object in my hand to him and he caught it with confusion.

"There." I said. "That's the revival item."

He tapped it and a page of information showed up.

"Let me see. It says to administer to affected player within…" he stopped speaking once he read what I had read. "Within five minutes?!"

"If Asuna or someone else dies in front of you some day, make sure you use it." I said in a monotone voice.

I walked past them without saying another word.

"Come on, Sachi. Let's go."

I heard someone get up and run after me. After that, I felt their hand grab the back of my coat. I stopped walking.

"Kirito, listen to me!" Klein said from behind me.

I turned my head to look at him.

"No more of this going at it alone stuff!" he said. "Start travelling with Asuna and I! It'd make a difference!"

I shook my head.

"Sorry." I said as I turned to face them. "I have an obligation to protect Sachi. And I don't want to risk the lives of other players."

"You'd be able to protect her much better if you just travelled with us!" Asuna exclaimed.

I shook my head still. I stepped back.

"I won't allow you to risk yourselves for her. I'm sorry."

I turned back around and began walking. Sachi stayed behind for several seconds.

"Sorry." She said at last. "Thanks for the offer, though."

She then ran to catch up with me.

"What was that all about, Kirito?" she asked a few minutes into our walk back to the Inn.

I stopped walking.

"I'm sorry, Sachi."

"Kirito?"

I turned to face her.

"I lied to you, Sachi."

She gasped with shock.

"The only reason that I wanted to go after Nicholas was because I knew that the thing about him having a revival item was true. I kept that from you because I thought if you figured it out, that I wanted to get the item to revive the Black Cats, you would want to go with me. I'm sorry for lying to you."

Sachi said nothing. She just stood there, her eyes tearing up. She looked down at the ground.

"I get it if you hate me after this. I just thought that what I was doing was right."

Sachi looked up at me with shock. She let out a weird grunting sound, maybe disbelief, before she charged me and hugged me. The hug surprised me, but I didn't hug her back. She sniffled as she hugged me.

"You're so stupid, Kirito! You know that?"

I was shocked by her words, as she pulled away from the hug. She stared up at me, tears running down her cheeks.

"You're an idiot! You're my best friend, Kirito! You'd have to do something really stupid to make me hate you!"

I just stared back with surprise. Eventually, a small smile appeared on Sachi's face.

"Goofball!" she exclaimed as she playfully slugged me in the arm.

"Ow!" I complained as I rubbed my arm. "You know, for a girl, you hit pretty hard!"

She chuckled, but otherwise disregarded what I said.

"Okay, I'm not happy that you kept that from me, alright? But I respect your reasoning for it! You thought that you'd be keeping me safe, so I respect that!"

I just smiled down at her and she smiled back. She then took my hand and tugged on it.

"Come on. Let's go home."

I was reluctant to keep going after that, but nonetheless, I let her pull me back along the path towards Taft.

 _December 25_ _th_ _, 2023 – Eleventh Floor: Taft_

 _Midnight_

I sat in a chair, in our room in the Inn, lying my head down on a desk. Sachi sat on the bed, we had remained in silence for the past hour or so. I was trying to come to terms with the fact that there was no way to bring back the Moonlit Black Cats. I was brought out of my trance by the sound of a notification popping up for me.

I looked up. There was a flashing message notification and even though I didn't really want to, I tapped it. It said, "Gift Box from Sachi." I looked over at Sachi, who seemed to be oblivious to what was going on.

"Sachi?" I asked.

"Huh?" she asked as she looked up at me.

Her eyes went wide once she saw the notification.

"Kirito," she said as she got up. "Don't open it!"

"What? Why?"

"Just don't open it! Dismiss it!"

"Sachi, what's wrong with you?"

Sachi didn't say anything else. She ran over to me, probably to try to prevent me from opening the Gift Box, but on her way over to me, she tripped and fell onto the floor. And it was too late anyway. I had already opened the Gift Box, which turned out to be a recording. Eventually, Sachi's voice began to play over the recording.

"Merry Christmas, Kirito. By the time you hear this, I'll probably be dead. How can I explain this? To tell you the truth, I never really wanted to leave the Town of Beginnings. And I knew if I fought with an attitude like that, I'd end up dying one day. But that's not anyone's fault. That's something I have to deal with. Kirito, ever since that night you found me, you kept telling me that I wasn't going to die no matter what."

I looked over at Sachi, who wouldn't return my gaze.

"But what if I got killed anyway? I knew that if I died you'd blame yourself. That's why I decided to record this for you. Promise me something, Kirito. Promise me that even if I die, you'll keep pushing forward. Promise me that you'll stay alive to see the end of this world and figure out why it was created. Find out why a weakling like me ended up here. Find out the reason why you and I met. Please. That's what I wish. Looks like I still have time, so seeing how it's Christmas and everything, I'll sing you a song!"

Sachi stopped speaking over the recording and began to hum the tune to "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". I turned back to look at Sachi, who wouldn't look up at me as her past self hummed over the recording. Eventually, the humming ended, and she resumed talking.

"Anyway, Kirito, I'm so glad I met you and that I got to be with you. Even for a little while. Thank you."

I continued to stare at her long after the recording finished playing.

"Sachi…" I finally said.

She let out a sad grunt, before running over to me and hugging me. It shocked me, but I hugged her back.

"Sachi…"

"I thought that I would die!" she said as she cried into my shirt. "I thought that I'd be long dead before you heard that recording! I forgot all about it!"

"Hey, Sachi, it's okay." I said as I rubbed her back, trying to comfort her. "It's okay."

After what seemed like several minutes, Sachi and I laid on the bed, with her still in my arms. Just to clarify it now, Sachi and I were not a couple, I was being truthful when I said that to Klein earlier tonight. Sachi just seemed to be really content when I held her as she rested her head on my chest.

"Hey, Sachi?" I asked, breaking the silence.

"Hmm?" she responded, not moving from her spot.

"You should sing or hum more." I said. "You have a pretty nice singing voice."

"Oh, shut up!" she said as she lightly slapped me on the cheek.

"But that was a compliment!" I protested.

She didn't say anything else after that.

"Merry Christmas, Sachi." I said at last, returning the favor for what she had said at the beginning of the recording.

She shifted in my arms but didn't say anything in return. After we both went silent, I got back to thinking. Something that Klein and Asuna had both said to me earlier that evening. They said that I would not be able to protect Sachi all by myself.

 _What if they were right?_

Sachi was a pure, nervous person. She was too nice to people and she was still afraid to die. Klein and Asuna were right, I decided. There was no way that I'd be able to protect Sachi all by myself. But with two or even one more person, I had a better shot at keeping her safe. If I had Klein and Asuna with me, it wouldn't be as hard keeping her safe. And besides, they were old friends of mine. If I could trust them, then in time, Sachi would be able to as well.

"Sachi?" I asked at last.

She shifted in my arms, but otherwise didn't say anything.

"I changed my mind." I said.

"Mmm?" Sachi grunted as she shifted once again.

"I was wrong. I can't protect you all by myself." I said. "So, at first light tomorrow, I think we're going to set out to find my old friends, Klein and Asuna."

Sachi said nothing.

"Sachi?" I asked again.

She said nothing still. I looked down, to see that her eyes were closed. Her chest was also slowly rising and falling. She had fallen asleep. I let out a sigh as I laid back once more.

"Sweet dreams, Sachi." I spoke.

 _The Next Morning – Thirty Fifth Floor: Forest Maze_

Once the sun had come up the next morning and Sachi had woken up, I told her what I had planned to do. And although she acted half awake and reluctant to go, she eventually agreed to go with me. We trudged through the snowy Forest Maze in the early morning, hoping to track Klein and Asuna's position. I stopped walking and gestured for Sachi to do the same thing.

"Kirito? What is it?"

"Shh. I think they're up ahead. Let's go!"

"Kirito! Wait!"

But I kept running. Eventually I heard Sachi sigh from behind me, before taking off after me. I kept running, until I came into a clearing, where a group of people sat around a dying campfire. Two of the people got up to come greet Sachi and I, and I was happy when I realized that they were Klein and Asuna.

"What did I tell you?" Klein asked, looking at Asuna as they walked over. "I told you so."

"Okay, okay, you were right!" Asuna said in an annoyed tone. "That doesn't mean you have to rub it in, though!"

"What's going on?" I asked as they reached us.

"Oh, nothing." Klein said. "I just decided last night that we should set up camp incase you guys came back. Some hunch I had, right?"

"Um, sure."

"But anyway, what are you guys doing back?"

"I may have had some second thoughts."

Asuna flashed me a strange look.

"Look, you guys were right, okay? I can't protect Sachi on my own. So, I was kinda wondering if it wasn't too late for me to ask to travel with you guys?"

Klein just beamed at me.

"Of course, man! We'd love to have you guys travelling with us!"

I don't know why, but I blushed.

"Great, thanks! I'm glad that it's not too late!"

"Hey, don't sweat it, man. That's what old friends are for! You'll fit in great with us!" he said before he looked over at Sachi. "Come on, Sachi. I'll get you acquainted with our group."

Sachi nervously stepped forward, but followed Klein nonetheless. They walked off, leaving Asuna and I to stand in the snow by ourselves. We just stared at each other.

"What?" she finally asked in an impatient tone

"I just noticed that you're wearing your cloak again." I said. "I thought you lost it in the fight with Illfang?"

Asuna shuddered, as if it was a bad memory for her.

"I missed the cloak and it was beginning to get cold anyway. So, I bought it back."

"How is the old gang, anyway?"

"I don't know. All I know is that Diavel is still running the same group. He was a beta tester, like you. Did you know that?"

I shook my head.

"No, I didn't."

"Yeah, me neither."

We stood in silence again after that.

"Kirito?" she asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Yeah?" I asked as I looked back up at her.

Then she did something that surprised me. She punched me in the jaw.

"Ow!" I exclaimed as I stepped back. "What was that…"

"Look, I still think that you're a jerk for abandoning us back then." She said, interrupting me as she blushed. "But, nevertheless… Nevertheless, welcome back."

She then turned back around and walked towards where Klein and Sachi were hanging out. I stood there, rubbing my cheek in the spot where Asuna had punched me. Was I mad that she had punched me? Yeah, but we were all friends, so it wasn't something worth getting mad about. I let out a sigh and began to follow Asuna back to where the group were backing up their campsite.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that is it for this chapter. I know that it was a long one, but I didn't want to split it up, since it's an adaptation of Episode Three of the Anime.

* So, my adaptation is shaping up to be even more different from the Anime, seeing as Sachi was alive at the end of this chapter. She's going to be around for pretty much the entirety of the Aincrad Arc.

* Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _E3L (Chapter Two): I don't often leave reviews on this site, but I've been thinking of doing something similar to this so I thought I would leave some comments on this fic. I actually want to address something apart from the plot here – namely, your writing style. Put bluntly, it's rather difficult to read._

 _I know you've written other stories from your profile so you might have gotten this feedback before, but there is an excess of speaking verbs here (said, asked, whispered, etc). These aren't needed for every line of dialogue, or else the text will get bloated and significance will be taken away from the actual plot. Also, if you ARE using a speaking verb, the dialogue line should end in a comma (,) rather than a full question or exclamation, and the following prose (he said, they said, etc) should not be capitalised._

 _Example of what I mean, taken from your story:_

" _Hey man," he whispered to me as he sat down. "Sorry I'm late! What'd I miss?"_

" _Nothing much, really," I whispered back. "Meeting just started. You're practically right on time."_

" _Thanks!"_

" _No problem. Now shut up and listen!"_

 _Not trying to sound too critical here, but this is the grammar used in basic writing conventions, and I guarantee they'll make your writing flow a lot better. So yeah, I hope you take into account at least some of that going into your next chapter. All the best!_

Okay, yeah, I get it. You're trying to help improve my writing style and you're right, this isn't the first time that I've gotten this type of feedback. And if you think that my current writing style is hard to read, then you should have seen my old writing style. People tell me that my old style used to be a nightmare to read through and looking back on it now, I agree. As for the capitalizations, that's something that Word does, so I assume that it's right.

Look, I appreciate the advice, I really do. But I'm not inclined to just change my current style, especially when I look at the fact that I've been used the same style for over a year now. I'm sure that you saw that I tried taking your advice once or twice in this chapter. And whether that stays is ultimately up to if I want it to stay. It's not really easy for me to change my writing style and I hope that there aren't any hard feelings if I decide not to change at all.

So, if I do change it, then good for you. You helped me out a little. But if I decide not to change, I don't really know what to say other than I'm sorry. I mean, at least you tried right? Is that something that you'd consider? I hope that you don't take that as an insult or anything else. As it is, thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: While traveling in a forest, Kirito runs into a female player in desperate need of help.


	4. Chapter 4: The Black Swordsman

Chapter 4: The Black Swordsman

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Four! I'm not sure that there will be any big differences in this chapter, but I guess you'll see as you read.

* Well, I don't really have anything else to say. With that said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _February 23, 2024 – Thirty Fifth Floor: Lost Forest_

I was walking around in the forest at night, doing some leveling, when I don't know who, or why, but someone was screaming. So, I hightailed it in the direction of the screaming. Once I got close enough, I saw that the assailants were three giant monsters. I guess you could say that they looked like giant baboons? They were actually called Drunk Apes.

I silently approached all three of them, slashed them all with my sword and killed them all. Once the glittering shards had cleared, I got my first look at the girl sitting on the ground. The girl was wearing a dark gold tunic with red trim and armor plates over that. She also had red eyes, as well light brown hair tied into twin tails with matching red ribbons. She stared up at me with tears in her eyes as I approached her.

"You okay?" I asked as I sheathed my sword.

She continued to stare up at me with tears in her eyes.

"Pina…" was all she said as tears streamed down her cheeks.

I just stood there, unsure of what to say.

"Don't leave me all alone here!" the girl said as she picked up a glowing blue feather that was lying on the ground. "Pina!"

She continued to cry as I looked on at her.

"What's that feather?" I finally asked.

She continued crying as she answered.

"It's Pina… my best friend." She said.

A shocked, sympathetic expression came onto my face.

"You're one of those beast tamers, aren't you?" I asked.

When she didn't respond, I looked down at the ground.

"I'm sorry." I said. "If I got here sooner, I may have been able to save your friend."

"No, that's all my fault." She said as she continued to cry. "I was stupid to think I could make it through the forest on my own."

She straightened up and turned back to look at me, tears still in her eyes.

"Thank you for saving me." She said. "You did what you could."

I stared down at the feather in her hands and a curious thought came to my mind.

"That feather," I spoke as I walked up to her and kneeled onto the ground. "Check to see if it has an item name attached to it."

She let out a small gasp before doing as I said and tapped the feather. The name "Pina's Heart" popped up. That didn't seem to cheer her up, as she began to cry again.

"Hey, don't cry." I said. "That means if Pina's Heart is still here, there's a chance that you can revive it."

She looked up at me and her tears faded for a second.

"No way, really?" she asked in surprise.

I smiled at her.

"On the south side of Floor Forty Seven, there's a field dungeon called "The Hill of Memories"." I said. "I heard somewhere that the flower growing at the top can revive familiars."

Her tears disappeared completely as a happy look appeared on her face. Then her happy look disappeared as she looked away from me.

"Floor Forty Seven, huh?" she asked in a sad tone.

"I'd offer to go and get it for you, all you would have to do is pay for the trip." I said as I ran my fingers through my hair. "The thing is, the flower will only bloom if the familiar's master is there."

She turned to face me.

"Oh, thank you so much for telling me about it!" she said. "If I work hard to raise my level, then someday I can…"

I hated to interrupt her, but I did it anyway.

"Sure, but the time limit's three days to revive it." I said to her.

She gasped with shock.

"No way…" she said as she looked down. "It's all my fault. I'm so sorry, Pina."

I stood up as she finished her sentence.

"Look, you have three days." I said as I opened my inventory. "If you take this equipment and if I tag along, everything will work out."

She stood up next to me.

"But why would you do all this for me?" she asked with confusion.

I turned my head to look at her.

"I'll tell you." I said as I put my hand on the side of my face. "But you have to promise not to laugh, okay?"

"I promise I won't." she said in a sincere tone, with a straight face.

I let out a sigh as I looked away and covered my eyes.

"Alright, it's because you remind me of a friend of mine." I said. "And more or less because you look like my little sister."

The girl looked up at me with a blank expression, before a small smile appeared on her face. She then did her best to suppress her laughter, but she failed and began laughing out loud anyway. I watched her keep laughing for a few seconds before I heaved a sigh and turned away from her.

"I'm sorry." She said at last after she had quit laughing. "I know this isn't enough Col to pay you back…"

"No, it's cool." I said as I turned to face her. "It works with why I'm here. We'll be helping each other out."

She gave me a confused look.

"Look, I feel like I could have done more. So, I'll go with you and help you out." I said as I looked away from her, scratching my neck as I did. "Besides, I was kind of already heading there anyway."

I looked back at her as a happy look came onto her face.

"Really?" she asked. "Okay then, my name's Silica!"

She stuck out her hand.

"My name's Kirito." I said as I took her hand and we shook. "I guess we'll be working together for a while!"

 _Later That Evening – Thirty Fifth Floor: Mishe_

Silica and I walked through the town of Mishe on Floor Thirty Five. That's when someone called out her name.

"Hey look, it's Silica!" the male voice exclaimed.

She turned to look in the direction of the voice as I came to a stop. Two guys, one of them slightly overweight and the other relatively skinny, jogged over to us. One of them had brown eyes, while the bigger guy had blonde hair that was cut into a bit of a flat top, I guess? He also wore a long sleeved dark gold shirt, with an olive green vest over that and brown pants.

The other guy had short brown hair, with bangs hung down on either side of his face. He wore a long maroon tunic with black armor plates covering his upper body. The bigger guy kneeled forward and put his hands on his knees as he began to speak.

"We were beginning to get worried when you didn't get back right away!"

"U-Um…" Silica spoke in a nervous and embarrassed tone.

"Do you want to team up with us?" the other guy asked. "We'll take you wherever you wanna go!"

The more I thought about it and with their voices, I could have sworn I saw these two guys before. I just couldn't figure out where I had seen them before. Silica took a step or two back with an embarrassed smile on her face.

"That's really nice of you to offer." she said as she looked over at me.

She suddenly grabbed me by the arm and pulled me closer to her, causing me to gasp with surprise as she did.

"But I've sort of already agreed to be in a party with him for a while, so…"

Both of them now noticed me and looked at me with resentment. I felt like I should speak up, so I did.

"Yeah, I agreed that I'd help her with something." I said.

Their looks of resentment didn't change. Sweat began to bead up on my forehead, as I realized I had done nothing to help my case.

"'Kay, later, bye!" Silica blurted out, before walking away from them, pulling me along as she went.

As we walked away, Silica spoke.

"I didn't mean to put you on the spotlight like that." she spoke in a nervous tone.

"That's okay." I said before I smiled. "I didn't you had fans. You must be pretty popular, huh?"

"No… They don't take me seriously." She said, which caused my smile to disappear. "They want me to be their mascot. I guess they're right. They called me "Dragon Tamer" and it went to my head…"

She stopped walking as she said that. I turned to look at her.

"Don't worry about that." I said, which caused her to look up at me with surprise.

I stepped up to her.

"We'll make it in time, I promise." I said as I put my hand on top of her head and began ruffling her hair.

She began giggling as I did that.

"Hey!" she said as she smacked my hand away. "Don't mess with my hair!"

I laughed as she did that. We began walking again shortly after that.

"I guess they're my friends." She said as we began walking again. "Don't you have friends, Kirito?"

I turned to look at her.

"Well, yeah. Who doesn't?"

"You, apparently."

"Hey, that's not fair, Silica!"

She laughed in response to what I said. She had laughed so hard that by the time she had finished, she was wiping tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry. But seriously, don't you have any friends?"

"Yes. Three of them, actually. The first two, who are a boy and girl respectively are whom I'm closest with. And the other one, well, let's just say that she and I have a unique relationship."

Silica gave me a look of confusion.

"Are you saying that you two are dating?"

"What? No. Not she and I. We could never date each other. I can't even say for certain that we're actually friends. We both despise each other, we can't stand in the same room together for more than five minutes before one of us starts screaming. But at the same time, we like each other. We'll help each other out if the other is in a pinch. You see, it's a very interesting relationship."

Silica didn't say anything for a few seconds.

"That sounds like a very complicated love story." She said at last. "I can't wait to hear the end of it!"

"Hey, I just told you that it wasn't love!"

Silica just laughed. I let out a sigh as we kept walking. A few minutes passed before one of us said something.

"So, do you live around here, Kirito?"

"Yeah. I live with one of my other friends on the Eleventh Floor. We stay in an Inn in the town of Taft. Although, we both are thinking about moving up to Floor Fifty, so we'll be closer to our other two friends."

"Ah."

"But seeing as I'll be helping you for a while, I might stay the night here in town. Depending on wherever you're staying."

"If you stay, I could take you out for some cheesecake! It's really good here!"

Before I could say anything, a new female voice called out to us.

"Well, if it isn't Silica!"

Silica let out a whimper of fear, as we looked in the direction of the voice. There was a group of people standing a few feet away from us. There were three guys and one girl. Now, I didn't recognize the guys, but I did recognize the girl. She was tall, had red hair that hung down in her face, blocking one side of her face from view. She also wore mostly black with a touch of red here and there. If I wasn't mistaken, I believe her name is Rosalia.

One of the guys with her was tall, wore silver armor all over his body, had a bit of a shaggy chin and it looked like he had light brown hair from what I saw sticking out from underneath his helmet. The other guy, who may have been a girl for all I knew, because of the girlish face he had, wore all green. Green tunic, a small green cloak thing and a green hat of some kind, and lastly, he had medium length black hair. That's another reason why I thought that "he" may be a girl.

And lastly, the other guy was tall just like the first guy, in the sense that he wore silver armor. He also wore a long, dark red cloak and wore a dark gray helmet, which barely showed off a few strands of blonde hair.

"Wow, you made it out of the forest alive!" Rosalia remarked, sounding impressed. "Good for you, girl."

As Rosalia approached, I noticed how down Silica looked.

"Is something wrong?" I whispered to her.

"No, nothing!" she quickly said, as she turned to look at me with a happy look on her face.

"Aw, what happened to your little friend, the lizard?" Rosalia asked before I could respond to what Silica had said. "Did it run away?"

Silica looked away from Rosalia.

"Pina died saving me." She said out of sadness, before looking back at Rosalia with a determined look on her face. "But I'm going to get Pina back!"

"Really?" she asked as she straightened back up. "I guess you'll be heading for the Hill of Memories, then. I wonder if you'll be able to clear it at your level."

That seemed to make Silica unhappy, as I could swear seeing tears coming to her eyes. I didn't know how Rosalia knew Silica, but I was beginning to like her attitude less and less. It was at this time that I decided to step in for Silica.

"Of course, she will." I said as I stepped in front of Silica. "It's not that difficult a level. And with me with her, it should be a cakewalk!"

As Rosalia stared at me, she rolled her eyes.

"Oh God, don't tell me this girl seduced another player? No, it's not difficult, but you don't look _that_ strong."

Silica and I looked at each other. I eventually looked back at Rosalia.

"There's a lot that you don't know about me." I said as I narrowed my eyes. "And besides, who said that I'm doing this just for her? I have my own reasons for wanting to go to the Hill of Memories."

Rosalia chuckled as she closed her eyes.

"And why would you want to go to the Hill of Memories?"

"Now why would I tell you of all people, a player I don't even know, my motives?"

She opened her eyes and looked at me, as if I had offended her. I grabbed Silica's hand and gently pulled her along as I walked past Rosalia and her men.

"Come on, Silica."

"Wow, that was so awesome!"

"Thanks." I replied as I let go of her hand.

I didn't know how to ask about Rosalia, so I decided to play dumb.

"Who was she?" I asked.

Silica looked down with an uncomfortable look.

"I used to be in a party with her. Her name is Rosalia. And she really isn't a nice person."

I chuckled.

"Yeah, I noticed."

 _Several Minutes Later_

Silica and I sat in the restaurant that served cheesecake. She let out a sigh before speaking.

"Why does she have to be so mean?"

"Well, is Sword Art Online your first MMO?"

"Uh-huh."

"A lot of people's personalities change when the play games online. And some actually like playing the game as bad guys. You see how our player cursors are green? Well, if you commit a crime against another player, your cursor's gonna turn orange. Then they become what's called a red player, the worst, also known as "player killers". They're all about murder."

Silica gasped and gave me a surprised, scared look.

"They kill other players?"

"In a normal game, you role play as a bad guy, everyone laughs and it's cool. But Sword Art Online isn't normal."

Silica let out another low gasp as she looked down at the table.

"It's definitely not a game." I said.

"Kirito…"

I looked up at Silica, to see she had a scared look on her face. I looked down at the table.

"I'm sorry."

Silica was silent for a few seconds. She eventually spoke again, and in a much higher voice.

"Well, I think you're good, so…" she spoke in a high voice as she stood up and reached across the table, putting her hands on mine. "I mean, you saved me after all!"

I looked at her with surprise for a second before I smiled.

"Well, it looks like you cheered me up instead." I said as I continued to smile. "Thank you, Silica."

Silica stared back up at me for several seconds, before she blushed bright red. She let out a sound of embarrassment as she quickly pulled her hands away and sat back down.

"Wow! Where the heck is our cheesecake, already?" she asked as she looked away from me.

I looked at her for a few seconds, before I chuckled in response to her trying to hide that she was blushing.

"Excuse me!" she called out to a waitress. "Our dessert hasn't shown up yet!"

 _Later That Night_

I walked down the hallway of that Inn that I was staying in that night, with Sachi walking by my side.

"Her name is Silica. She lost her pet dragon, named Pina, while going through the forest on Floor Thirty Five." I said as we walked down the hall. "I offered to tag along with her to the Hill of Memories, so she could revive it. So, I'm going to be out of the party for a couple days or so."

Sachi looked at me with a smirk on her face.

"Do you like her?" she asked.

I stopped walking and so did she.

"What?"

"Do you like her?" she asked as she wiggled her eyebrows up and down, a suggestive look gleaming in her eyes.

I let out a gasp of shock and embarrassment.

"Sachi, it's not like that! I just think that I could have done more, and I want to try to help her the best I can! Did I mention that I saved her, but I didn't get to her in time to save Pina, too?"

"Yes." She said as she nodded.

"Then why do you think that I like Silica? Why do you keep coming back to things like this?"

"Because there's Asuna…"

"Sachi, there is nothing between us and Asuna! Besides, she and I hate each other! We can't stand being around each other for that long! It's never long before one of us starts an argument with the other!"

Sachi stared off into space with glossy eyes.

"Ah, such a great beginning to an endearing love story!"

"It's not a love story, Sachi. Jeez! This is exactly what Silica thought as well!"

Sachi just chuckled as we walked the rest of the way down the hall in silence. I guess I forgot to mention that Sachi and I had been running with Klein and Asuna for a few months now. Sachi had gotten used to running with more players again and she and Asuna got along pretty well. Sachi and I had pretty much been welcomed into the group that Klein and Asuna were a part of. Although we had stayed partied up since the day after Christmas, Sachi stayed with Klein and Asuna, while I kept mostly to myself and checked in with them once every week or so. Sachi and I stopped outside the door to Silica's Inn room.

"Look," I said as I turned to face Sachi. "Just be nice to her. She is actually pretty nice."

"I am nice, Kirito. That's all I ever am."

"I know. I just feel like I have to say something."

I knocked on the door.

"Silica, you still awake?"

"K-Kirito?" Silica said my name in a panicked tone from the other side of the door.

"I forgot to tell you some stuff about Floor Forty Seven. But it can wait 'til tomorrow."

I was about to walk away back down the hall, when she spoke from the other side of the door.

"No, now's fine! Besides, I was just thinking I should ask you about…"

She went silent after that for a few seconds.

"Silica? Are you alright?"

"Yeah, of course! I'm fine! Just give me a few minutes!" she finally said, speaking in what sounded like a flustered tone.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Sachi looking at me. There was a suggestive look in her eyes. I blushed as I saw that.

"Shut up." I whispered.

She chuckled.

"Hey, my lips are sealed, Kirito."

We stood there in silence for a couple minutes, before Silica opened the door to the room. She still had her hair tied into twin tails and she now wore a nightgown. She blushed, giggling as she gestured for me to come in.

"Hey, Kirito! Come on in!"

I just stood outside, kind of being uncomfortable with how Silica was acting. That's when she noticed Sachi standing next to me.

"Oh! Who do you have with you, Kirito?"

I stepped forward, as did Sachi.

"Silica, this is my friend, Sachi." I said as I gestured to her. "She insisted on meeting you when I told her that I'd be out helping you for a few days."

Silica looked at Sachi with a skeptical look, before it was replaced by a smile.

"Oh, it's so nice to meet you!" she said in an enthusiastic tone as she stuck out her hand.

"Likewise." Sachi spoke in a friendly tone as she took Silica's hand and they shook.

After their hands parted, Silica spoke once more.

"So, would you guys like to come in?"

We accepted the invitation and walked into her Inn room as she moved out of the way. A minute or so passed of me moving a table that sat in the corner of the room, across from the bed, while Sachi and Silica sat next to each other on the bed. The two of them talked, while Silica's cheeks remained a bright red color for most of the conversation.

"Hey, Silica, right?" Sachi asked. "Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing!" she said as the red faded from her cheeks. "I'm fine, really!"

I ignored them as I pulled a spherical object out of my coat and placed it on the table. I sat down in a chair at the table and activated the item.

"This is a Mirage Sphere." I said as a holographic 3D map of Floor Forty Seven appeared a few seconds later.

I looked on as Silica looked at the map in awe, as Sachi gave off a similar look, even though it wasn't her first time seeing what one of these could do. Silica let out a happy gasp as she continued to look at it.

"It's pretty!"

I smiled in reaction to what she said.

"This is the town area of Floor Forty Seven." I said as I pointed at the area on the map.

The map zoomed in on the spot that I was pointing at.

"And this is The Hill of Memories." I said. "I was thinking if we take this route, we could…"

I stopped speaking, thinking that I had heard something.

"Kirito?" Silica asked.

"Is something wrong?" Sachi finished for her.

I shushed her and then surprised them both by getting up and dashing to the door.

"Who's there?" I called out as I opened the door.

I looked to my right just in time to see someone running down the stairs to the lower level. I stood there for a few seconds, staring at the stairwell, before I turned back around and walking back into the room, shutting the door behind me as I went.

"What was that all about?" Sachi asked with confusion.

"Someone was eavesdropping on us." I said in a frustrated tone.

"But they can't!" Silica said with disbelief. "I mean, you can't hear through a door unless you knock first!"

"Well, that's not entirely true." Sachi said, looking at Silica, before she looked back at me. "Right, Kirito?"

I nodded back at her.

"If your listening skill is high enough, you can. It takes practice, not that many players have it."

"Why would they want to listen to us?"

I looked back at the door. I eventually walked back over to the table and sat back down, before deactivating the Mirage Sphere.

"Kirito?" Sachi asked with caution as she got up and walked over to me.

I looked up at them.

"I think someone is planning on following us tomorrow, Silica." I said at last.

Silica and Sachi exchanged glances.

"Why would anyone want to follow us?" she asked as she looked at me.

I shook my head.

"I don't know." I lied.

In truth, I think I did know who and why they wanted to follow us. I think it was Rosalia. She was eavesdropping on us, so she could follow us and have us do all of the hard work for her. And after that was said and done, she'd just take all of the rewards from us. It was the only logical explanation that I could come up with. But I decided not to tell Silica, as I didn't want to scare her with that scenario.

"All I know is, someone was eavesdropping on us."

"And you have no idea who?" Silica asked.

I shook my head.

"Well, what do we do now?" Silica asked. "Don't you want to tell me the rest of the stuff you need to tell me about Floor Forty Seven?"

"No." I said. "I'm just not in the mood to explain things right now."

"But I thought you really wanted to tell me?"

"It can wait until tomorrow."

There was silence in the room after that. Eventually, I stood up and moved the table back into its original spot.

"Well, it's getting late, Silica." I said as I looked up at her. "Sachi and I should probably get going so you can get some sleep."

"Oh, okay!" she said, before turning to look at Sachi. "Well, once again, it was really nice meeting you!"

"The pleasure's all mine." Sachi said as she smiled back at her.

Silica turned back to me.

"So, I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow!"

"Well actually, Sachi most likely won't be coming with us tomorrow. She'll help if she can, but she may be doing stuff with our party tomorrow. I just brought her along because I thought she'd like to meet you."

A surprised look formed on Silica's face.

"Oh! Well, I'm glad you brought her along! Besides, I'm confident that even if it's just the two of us, we'll be able to get the flower!"

I smiled at her.

"Yeah, of course we will!"

I stepped towards the door and Sachi followed.

"We'll be going now. Good night, Silica."

"Good night, Kirito! Good night, Sachi! It was nice meeting you!"

"Likewise. Good night, Silica." Sachi spoke as we walked out the door.

We stepped outside, and Silica shut the door. As we began to walk away, Sachi spoke.

"I like her. She's really nice, Kirito!"

I turned to face her as we walked.

"See? I told you she was nice. I honestly think she's a pleasant person to be around."

"She's really pretty too, you know that?"

I blushed as I continued to look at Sachi with a surprised expression.

"Sachi, I already told you it's not like that! Besides, did you see how young she looks compared to me?"

"Yes, but what has that got to do with anything?"

"Enough, Sachi. I don't want to hear any more about this."

"Okay, okay, fine! Jeez, Kirito! I was only teasing you!"

Sachi walked ahead of me, towards the stairwell.

"Sachi, wait up. Hold up for a second."

She stopped and turned to face me.

"What is it?"

I walked to catch up to her and came to a stop beside her.

"It's time." I whispered to her. "Get everyone ready."

She stared back at me with an unsure look on her face.

"Are you sure?" she finally asked.

I nodded.

"Yes. If my theory is correct, Rosalia will follow Silica and I tomorrow to try to get her hands on the flower or any Col and other rare items that we may find tomorrow. As much as I hate to say it, it's time to spring the trap on Rosalia and I'm volunteering myself and Silica to be the bait."

Sachi still had a look of uncertainty on her face.

"Okay. If you really think that it's the right time."

"I do. Tell Klein and Asuna that it's time. Tell them to track Silica and I as we make our journey, but don't get too close to us. I don't want to make Silica nervous."

Sachi nodded.

"Okay. I'll get right on it."

"Thanks. Well, good night, Sachi."

"You're saying good night? Are you not coming back to the Inn with me?"

I shook my head.

"No. I'm going to stay here for the night. Silica's probably gonna want to leave at first light tomorrow, so I want to be in a place where she can easily find me once she's ready to go."

"Whatever you say, Kirito. Well, good night then."

Sachi turned around and began to walk towards the stairwell.

"Hey! Tell them that I said hi and that I'm sorry I couldn't check in for me, would you?"

She turned back around and looked at me with a smile on her face.

"I'll do that. See you later, Kirito!"

"Bye!"

I waved at her, watching her go until she disappeared from sight down the stairs.

 _February 24_ _th_ _, 2024 – Forty Seventh Floor: Floria_

The next day, Silica and I appeared through the portal, arriving on Floor Forty Seven, in the Floria region. Today I wore my usual getup, while Sachi wore a red and white tunic, with red trim, which left her shoulders bare, as well as black boots and stockings. Upon seeing the area we were in, Silica got excited.

"Wow!" she said. "This place is like a dream!"

I chuckled in response, as I did to most things she said.

"Yeah, I know. The entire floor is covered in flowers. That's why they call it the Flower Garden."

As I said that, Silica continued gasping with awe as she looked around the Flower Garden. She giggled as she ran off to look at a patch of aqua colored flowers, while I looked on at her. She looked up with happiness as a lady bug flew off, but then froze completely. A confused expression came onto my face.

"Silica, what is it? Is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing!" she said as she stood up, turned around and brushed herself off. "Sorry to keep you waiting!"

I could have sworn I saw a red blush on her cheeks, but it was quickly fading. Typically, I chuckled at that, too.

"Come on, let's go." I said as I began walking away.

"Okay." She spoke, as she walked to catch up with me.

Some time passed, and we crossed a bridge. As we got to the other side of the bridge, I remembered something.

"Oh, I almost forgot." I said as I opened my inventory and activated a blue crystal. "Here, you should take this."

"What's that for?" she asked.

"If anything bad happens while we're in here, I'm going to tell you to warp out, okay? When I do, use this crystal. You can jump to any town with it."

"But…"

I interrupted her.

"No buts. Use it."

"Okay, I see."

She relunctantly took the teleport crystal from me.

"Come on." I said as I walked forward. "If we follow this path, it'll lead us right to the Hill of Memories."

Silica hurried to catch up with me. We walked for several seconds before Silica spoke.

"Um, Kirito…" she started to speak, but she never got to finish her sentence.

Out of nowhere, a pair of two green tentacles wrapped around her ankles and pulled her up into the air. She was being dragged up towards the closed mouth of a Giant Venus Fly Trap. As she hung upside down, her face grew red as she struggled to pull the black skirt that she wore underneath her tunic farther down. She looked down at the Fly Trap with fear as it began to open its mouth and began to freak out, flailing her arms about.

"Calm down!" I exclaimed. "It's not that strong!"

"Help Kirito, save me! Don't look, but save me!"

I put my hand over my eyes but looked through fingers and smiled a little as I watched her struggle.

"That's kinda… difficult." I said in a low voice after I decided what the appropriate word was.

"Darn you! Enough is enough!" she exclaimed as she sliced the Trap's tentacle clean off.

She fell towards the Trap and eventually stabbed through it with her sword. The Trap began to glow, before exploding into thousands of glittering pieces. Silica appeared on the ground, sheathing her sword. She turned back to look at me with a pink blush on her cheeks.

"Did you see anything?" she asked in a shaky voice.

I grinned as I turned away, blushing myself.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said.

She didn't say anything. I turned to look at her looking back at me.

"Silica? Are you okay?"

She gasped with embarrassment as her face turned red and then she did something strange.

"You p-p-pervert!" she exclaimed as she ran over to me and began smacking me in the chest.

She was smacking me surprisingly playfully, as if she didn't really mean it. The other thing that surprised me is how strong she seemed to be. In what seemed like no time at all, she had pushed me onto the ground and had fell down with me, right on top of me. We both blushed bright red and avoided each other's eyes.

"You wanna get off now?" I asked without looking at her.

"What?" she asked, as if she couldn't comprehend that she was right on top of me and her knee dug into my crotch.

I finally looked up at her, which only caused her blush to grow even brighter if that were possible.

"Oh, right!" she exclaimed as she got up off me. "Sorry!"

I let out a sigh as I got up from the grass.

"It's best if we both just forget about it." I said as I walked back on the path. "Come on."

She stood there behind me for a few seconds, before I heard her footsteps running to catch up with me. To lighten the mood after what had just happened, she asked me a question.

"Kirito, do you mind if I ask how you know Sachi? And… is she your girlfriend?"

I turned to look at her with surprise, before my gaze softened and I smiled at her.

"Why would you ask that?"

"It's just that you guys seem so close."

"We're not together. We _are_ just really close. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't think she might have a small crush on me, though."

"Why would you say that?"

"She ran away from the Guild one day and when I tracked her down, she revealed that she was afraid of dying. Later that night after I offered her comfort, she came to my Inn room and told me she couldn't sleep. So, she slept in bed with me that night and has ever since. And frequently, she'll fall asleep in my arms, where she seems to be most content."

"Yeah, that sounds like a small crush, if it is that anyway, to me. If that's the case, why not just ask her about it?"

"Who said that I return her feelings if she does have a crush on me?"

"What?"

"Silica, Sword Art Online isn't the place to be looking for love. And even if I did return Sachi's hypothetical feelings, we'd go out of our way to protect ourselves even more than we already do. If we started dating, we'd want to give our lives for the other. It would just make things harder in a fight, seeing as if we had feelings for each other and if one of us were to die, it would break the other person. Do you get what I'm trying to say?"

"I think I understand. But what about my other question? How do you two know each other?"

"Well, she and I got back a ways. We ran in the same Guild for a while, but eventually we decided to just form a duo and go our own way from the Guild."

"You guys used to run in the same Guild? Did something happen to make you guys want to leave?"

I looked at her in surprise. When she saw the look on my face, she shrunk back a little.

"Sorry if it seems like I'm prying." She said in a low voice.

She looked away from me as we kept walking.

"It's okay." I said. "But I hope you can respect it if I decide not to answer."

She nodded, which I saw out of my peripheral vision.

"Okay, I can understand that. But do you mind if I ask you another question?"

I chuckled.

"Well, you kinda just did, but go ahead."

"Why do I remind you of your sister? What's she like?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Well, you said I look like her. I know it's not polite to ask about your real life, but I'm just so curious."

"I call her my little sister, but she's actually my cousin. We were raised as brother and sister since we were babies, so I doubt she even knows. But I know. And I guess that's the reason I avoided her. Our grandfather's really strict. When I was eight, he made us take classes at the local Kendo Dojo. But after a couple years, I stopped going. Grandpa beat the hell out of me for that."

Silica gasped with shock after I said that. I looked back at her as we stopped walking.

"Oh my God, that's terrible!"

"Anyway, after that my sister stood up for me and told him to stop. She said she'd train hard for both of us. And she did. She trained so hard, that eventually she made it to the nationals."

"She did? How awesome!"

"Yeah, I've always felt guilty of putting her through that. I wouldn't doubt it if she hates me. God knows she could've been doing something else."

I turned my head to look at her and smiled.

"Maybe that's why I wanted to help you. In a weird way, it makes me feel like I'm paying her back. There it is."

"If you don't mind me saying, you're wrong. I don't think she hates you at all."

She ran in front of me, so she could look me in the eye.

"She wouldn't have gone through all of that work for you both if she hated you! Plus, I bet she really loves Kendo!"

I looked down at her, before I smiled.

"There you go again, making me feel better. Maybe you're right." I said as I reached out and patted the top of her head. "Thanks, Silica."

She looked up at me as her face turned beet-red.

"Ah!" she exclaimed as she stepped back and turned away from me. "Don't touch my hair!"

I just stared at her, smile still on my face before I chuckled. I walked past her.

"Come on, let's go."

Somehow, as she ran to catch up with me, I avoided it, but Silica wasn't as lucky. She continued walking down the path, until a red circle appeared around her, signaling a monster was spawning. She was being ingulfed by a giant creature that had many tentacles.

"Kirito…" I could barely hear her say my name.

I let out a sigh as I ran forward and killed the monster. After that, several more minutes of walking passed before Silica spoke again.

"Is that revival flower anywhere around here?"

"Yeah, over there." I said as I pointed down the path.

She started jumping up and down with joy and I chuckled at this.

"Come on." I said as I patted her on the head, despite what she had told me not to do. "Let's go before you get taken by another monster."

I walked forward, while Silica probably blushed beet red behind me.

"Hey, that's not funny!" Silica said as she ran ahead of me.

I chuckled.

"Yes, it is." I replied loud enough for her to hear.

She ran all the way to the giant stone container that the flower grew in, with me following closely behind. I could see from a distance as I neared, the flower beginning to bloom because of Silica's presence. She was in awe throughout the whole blooming process.

"Go ahead. Take it."

Silica let out a low gasp of excitement, before reaching out for the flower. She plucked it and the stem disappeared, allowing the name tag that said, "Pneuma Flower" to appear.

"You're sure that it will bring Pina back to life?" she asked as she looked up at me, a small red blush appearing on her cheeks as she did.

"Positive."

"I'm so glad…"

"There's a bunch of strong monsters lurking around here. Let's revive Pina once we get back to town. I'm sure she would want it that way."

Silica looked back at me, blush still on her face.

"Okay." She said in a happy tone.

Several minutes of walking later passed and Silica and I had come to a bridge. As we walked across the bridge, I sensed an abnormality. So, I put my hand on Silica's shoulder, making us both stop. She looked up at me with concern and confusion.

"Is something wrong?"

"Whoever's hiding out there, come out now!" I called out in a serious tone.

Somehow, I wasn't surprised to see Rosalia emerge from behind the second tree on the left, past the bridge. Once Silica saw her, she spoke.

"R-Rosalia?"

It sounded like she was shuddering just from saying her name alone.

"If you saw through my hiding skill so easy, your detection skill must be really high, swordsman." Rosalia spoke.

She looked over at Silica and her face brightened.

" _Ooo,_ it looks like you were successful getting your hands on the Pneuma Flower! Congratulations."

"Thanks." I interjected angrily. "But I see what you're doing. And you can't have it!"

She rolled her eyes.

"Please. Who do you think you're talking to? Just hand it over before you get hurt, kid."

"I said, no."

"And I said to hand it over. Do you really want to get yourself killed over a measly flower?"

"No one's going to hand anything over, Rosalia. Not to you, not to the Orange Guild, or should I say, Titan's Hand? You're their leader, right? Now, this is the part where I'd ask _you_ to walk away before you get yourself hurt."

"Nice…"

"But Rosalia's cursor is green!" Silica said.

"It's an easy trick. The green members find their victims, then they lure them straight to the orange players for the ambush. That was one of your pals last night, eavesdropping on us. Wasn't it?"

"Then, the reason you were in that party with me and the others…" Silica spoke with a trembling voice.

Rosalia had a devious look on her face.

"How perceptive. I was observing their strength. And watching them earn all that beautiful money."

Rosalia licked her lips, which made me shudder with disgust, it also made Silica whimper with fear.

"Anyway, back to you. I don't know why you think you can talk to me like that. You are not in a position to negotiate. So, just hand over that flower, kay? Preferably before you do something stupid and get yourself hurt."

I said nothing and remained standing where I was. She cleared her throat as she looked back at Silica.

"You were the one I was excited about and I was so sad when you left the party. But then you said you were getting a rare item. What I want to know is if you knew about us, why bring her? Are you dumb, or does she really have you wrapped around her finger?"

I could just sense Silica blushing right next to me.

"Nope, you're wrong both times. See, I've been looking all over for you, Rosalia."

She gave me a strange look.

"What are you talking about?"

I only grinned back at her before I said what I had to say next.

"You guys can come out now!" I exclaimed.

Rosalia looked surprised and Silica was probably as well, as I turned my head to look back. I took comfort in seeing Sachi, Klein and Asuna walking over the bridge and coming to stop several feet from Silica and I. I turned back to look at Rosalia.

"Remember ten days ago? You attacked a Guild called The Silver Flags? The leader survived. Four didn't."

"Oh, the losers that had no money…"

Rosalia's attitude infuriated me, but nevertheless, I kept talking. Or at least I tried to before Rosalia beat me to it.

"Who are those people? Is this an ambush? Who put you up to this? Was it the Holy Dragon Alliance? What about the Knights of the Blood Oath?!"

"They're people that share similar interests with me. They're not from any Guild, I would know. They just want to make Aincrad a better place, like me. That's all you need to know, Rosalia."

"I want to know more. I smell deception!"

"You don't get to know more, Rosalia. Anyway, their leader went back and forth from the warp point, to the front lines, morning 'til night. With tears in his eyes, he begged everyone he met to avenge his dead friends. But he didn't want you killed. No, he wanted you to go to prison. I was there the day he came into town. The people I have with me were there, too. And so, we vowed to find you and get you put away for the rest of your time here. And we've been looking for you for quite some time now. So, do you have any idea how he felt?"

She just smiled again, which unnerved me, as well as made me angrier.

"Can't say I do. Only idiots take this seriously." She spoke as she looked back at me. "So, what if we kill someone here? There's no proof that dying here means you're dead irl."

"You have no idea just how stupid you sound right now, do you? Everything that Akihiko Kayaba said on the first day was the truth. If you die in here, you're done. There are no second chances. That makes you a cold-blooded murderer, Rosalia."

 _I watched four of my friends die and there's not a damn thing I can do about it, so I know that this is real!_

"Do you even know who you're talking to? You can't talk to me like that! Anyway, maybe you should start worrying about yourselves."

She snapped her fingers and just like that, about seven men, maybe more, all emerged from behind the trees. And not so surprising at this point, they all had orange cursors. Silica began to back away with fear, but I wasn't scared. In fact, I had foreseen this. I turned my head back, to see Sachi, Klein and Asuna all move closer to Silica and I, all of them ready to draw their weapons. I let out a breath of relief as I looked back at Rosalia and her approaching henchmen.

"Looks like we've come to a bit of a standoff!" I said with a grin on my face. "However, this doesn't have to end in violence. We can work something out!"

Rosalia sneered in response to what I said.

"You're so right. So, just hand over the Pneuma Flower and all of this will go away."

"I already told you that's not going to happen."

Silica piped up as I said that.

"Kirito, there's too many of them! We should get out of here!"

"It's okay, Silica. Just remain calm. Keep that crystal handy until I say so. And stay here."

I began to walk forward and unsheathe my sword as she spoke again.

"Okay, but… Kirito!"

Rosalia and her henchmen seemed surprised that I was approaching.

"Stop walking, damn it! Don't throw your life away over some stupid, insignificant, little flower!" she yelled as I approached. "Just hand it over and all of this can go away! Don't make me kill you!"

However, I didn't stop walking. I just kept coming. As I got closer, I could have sworn I heard one of her henchmen muttering something about the Black Swordsman, which was an alias other players had called me.

"He's on an Assault Team!" he said.

I heard Silica gasp from behind me. Well, to be truthful, it wasn't just me. Sachi, Klein and Asuna were all on the same Assault Team, as well.

"Oh, come on! Why would someone from the Assault Team be all the way down here? Go on and kill him! Then kill his friends, too! Leave no witnesses! Show them just how unforgiving Titan's Hand can be!"

I knew that Silica and even possibly the others could be freaking out right now, but what Rosalia said didn't phase me at all. With me on the metaphorical chessboard, this would be over pretty quickly. They all charged me, one of them exclaimed for me to die and then they all started slashing me with their swords. I could hear Silica say something to herself, but I could hear exactly what she was saying. No matter how many times they hit me, it barely did anything.

The eventually stopped striking me, panting from all of the energy they had used to strike me. And I just stood there, not moving at all. Rosalia, however, was not happy to see her henchmen just standing there.

"What the hell, you idiots?! Kill him already!"

I looked around me.

"Four hundred in ten seconds, give or take." I said as I looked at her henchmen. "That's about the total damage that the seven of you can inflict on me."

Rosalia let out a growl on anger.

"I'm a level seventy eight. I've got 14,500 HP. My auto healing skill regenerates six hundred points every ten seconds. We could stand here all day; you guys would have broken a huge sweat and I wouldn't have even had to lift a finger."

There were several grunts of anger among her henchmen.

"That's not possible!" one of them said.

I looked back at them with a smirk on my face.

"Wanna bet?" I asked in a challenging tone. "If your numbers are high enough, you're invincible. MMOs that use leveling systems are unfair that way!"

Rosalia only let out another angered grunt. I pulled out a warp crystal from my inventory and held it up for them all to see.

"Our client spent his entire fortune on this warp crystal and he'll get his moneys worth! It's been set to the coordinates of the prison. And I'm sending all of you bastards there!"

Rosalia got into a fighting stance.

"Well, I'm green! And if you hurt me, you'll go orange and…"

I sighed and rolled my eyes, before within a flash I had run over to Rosalia and my blade was just barely touching her neck. She looked down at me and for the first time, I could have sworn that I saw fear in her eyes.

"If you'll just cooperate with us and back down, I won't have to go orange. But if I have to go orange, the world will just have to wait for me to go green again, as will my friends."

Rosalia wasn't moving.

"But, although I'd prefer not to, I _will_ kill you if it means protecting the people with me. But don't make me do it. Be a good girl and just back down. Cooperate with us or don't Rosalia. It's your choice."

Rosalia finally gave in and dropped her weapon.

 _Later That Day – Thirty Fifth Floor: Mishe_

Finally, after Rosalia and her men had surrendered, and once they'd been sent to the prison area, I formally introduced Silica to Klein and Asuna.

 _Don't worry, they're good people,_ I had said to her. _You can trust them, as how you've trusted me for the last couple days._

Eventually, she got over her shyness and the shock of what she had just seen, and she eagerly began to chat with them. But after about ten minutes, I had to cut it short and explained to them that I wanted to see to it that she got settled in and was able to use the Pneuma Flower on Pina's Heart before the timer ran out. And so, Silica and I departed from them and I promised to catch up with them later. And so, now we sat in Silica's Inn room.

"I'm really sorry, Silica." I said at last as we sat next to each other on the bed. "This whole time I was basically using you as bait, so my friends and I could catch Rosalia in an ambush. I honestly should have told you the truth, but I thought if you knew, you wouldn't want to be around me."

Out of nowhere, Silica took my hand in hers. I looked at her with surprise, to see a happy smile on her face.

"I could never be scared of you, Kirito! You're a good person and so are your friends, I can tell! Besides, I'm really happy that Rosalia is locked away now!"

I smiled as she said that.

"Me too, you have no idea."

I noticed a blush appear on Silica's cheeks, before she quickly let go of my hand.

"Um, do you really have to go soon?"

I looked away from her.

"Yeah, my party and I have been away from the frontlines for almost a week now, planning the ambush. And we really need to get back."

"I think it's cool with the Assault Team! I could try for a hundred years and I'd never make it. They're lucky to have you!"

I looked back at her and chuckled in response to what she said. She blushed once again as I looked at her.

"Um, I…"

I turned away and interrupted her.

"You know, levels are just numbers. And a person's strength in this world is just an illusion. Sure, it's cool and all, but there's more important things than that."

I turned to face her again, with a smile on my face.

"We should meet up in the real world one day, okay? It'd be cool, because I like having you as a friend!"

She blushed once again.

"Speaking of the real world, I think that'd you be just as strong out there as you are in here!" she blurted out.

My face felt like it was on fire at this point, considering the fact that I was probably blushing bright red. I distracted myself from the thought and stood up from the bed.

"So, you ready to revive Pina?"

She jumped off the bed with excitement.

"Yeah!"

She opened up her inventory and selected Pina's Heart. She sat it down on the table and then selected the Pneuma Flower. She stood there as she held it in her hand, staring down at it with a smile on her face. She looked up at me and I nodded. She looked back down Pina's Heart and angled the Flower down, allowing the Flower's dew to fall onto Pina's Heart. The Heart began to glow and eventually a small, dragon, I assumed it to be Pina, formed from the Heart's place.

Pina was actually a pretty dragon, I had to admit. She looked like she was a Feathered Little Dragon, with pale blue feathers and two longer feathers in place of her tail. Silica got excited immediately as she saw Pina again.

"Pina! You're alive!" she exclaimed as the dragon in question hovered a foot or two from Silica's face, flapping her wings to keep from falling. "And it's all thanks to him!"

Silica pointed at me, as Pina turned to face me. My face turned red from fear and embarrassment as Pina flew over to me. But instead of attacking me like I thought she would, she opened her mouth, revealing a small, light purple tongue and began to lick my cheek.

"Huh?" I grunted from the sudden display of affection from the dragon.

She then did something that surprised me even more. She flew upwards a little bit and hovered over my head, before eventually perching and lying down on the top of my head.

"Hey!" I said, just about to attempt to bat her away, but Silica thankfully stopped me before I could do that.

"It's okay, Kirito!" she said as she stepped forward. "That means she likes you!"

I hadn't considered that, as stupid as it may sound.

"It does? She does?" I asked.

She nodded as Pina rested her chin on top of my head, just inches from where my hairline started. It kind of made sense now, as Pina seemed pretty content where she was at, not wanting to leave anytime soon.

"She does that to me all the time! When she's sitting on the top of my head, that's when she's happiest! She also likes to sleep in my lap at night!"

"She does? Oh. Aww!"

I cooed as if I were looking at a really cute puppy, which made me mentally smack myself. I didn't know why I allowed myself to make that sound. Above me, I could have sworn I heard Pina begin to purr, similar to how a cat would in the real world.

"And that means that she's really happy!" she said.

"It does, huh?"

I reached my hand up to attempt to pat Pina on the head, but I didn't succeed, as she'd just lick my fingers at every chance she was given. Silica laughed at my failure.

"So, how'd you tame Pina?"

"Huh? Oh, I was out in a forest one day when I found her. I liked her, so I fed her some peanuts that I had gotten that same day. And after that, she started following me around and would protect me, as if she had become loyal to me. I guess you could say that's how and when I tamed her?"

"Oh. Well, can I ask you another question?"

"Sure."

"Where did you come up with her name? I don't mean to pry, but you've asked me a lot of questions and now I have one for you. So, to return the favor, would you answer my question?"

She looked down for a few seconds, before looking back up at me with a smile on her face, as well as a light blush.

"Her name is also the name of my cat in the real world."

"Oh! Well, that makes sense. If it means anything, I hope you get to see her again one day."

She smiled once more.

"I know I will! One day we're gonna beat this game and we'll all go home!"

I smiled back.

"Yeah, you're right!"

After about a minute of silence, I spoke again.

"Hey Silica, can you call her over to you? I think I'm going to get going soon."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure. Pina! Here, girl!"

She seemed reluctant to do so, but Pina eventually stood up on my head, let out a screech that her species may possibly do and flew over to Silica. She hovered over Silica for a few moments, before she came down to rest on the top of her head, just like she had done for me. In fact, now that I looked at Pina, she did seem pretty comfortable where she was at.

"Well Silica, before I go, you should really friend me! That way if you and Pina are ever in another pinch, at least me, Sachi, Klein or Asuna or even all three of us can come lend you a hand!"

Her face brightened at the mention of that.

"That's a great idea! I'll do that!"

Silica opened up her menu and friended me, while I did the same for her. Once that was done, I backed up towards the door.

"Well, I guess I'll be seeing you, Silica. Take care of yourself!"

"Yeah, you take care of yourself, too! Bye, Kirito! Thanks for helping me!"

I smiled as I blushed light pink.

"It was no problem. Bye, Silica!"

"Bye!"

I chuckled and with that, I left the Inn room.

 _Author's Note:_

* Oh man, I am so glad that this chapter is finished. This one was an interesting one to write, but not as interesting as the last chapter, with Sachi surviving and all. Well, anyway, I hope my readers enjoyed this chapter!

* I also hope that the readers enjoyed the changes I made to Episode Four as well as all of the scenes I added. They took some thought, so I hope everyone liked them!

* There might be two or three more chapters for this story this year. I want to try to at least finish through my adaptation of Episode Seven before the year is done, but we'll just have to see how that goes.

* Anyway, once again I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If it's not too much to ask and you do enjoy this story, consider giving it a favorite, a follow and/or submitting a review? Anyway, I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 3): This is a really great story! Please continue it, even through the ALO (Fairy Dance) arc!_

Well Naruto, I'm glad you're enjoying the story! I'm glad you'd like to see an adaptation of the Alfheim arc (I'd heard it referred to as the Fairy Dance arc before, but I'm just most comfortable calling it the Alfheim arc and I most likely will just keep calling it that).

Well, I'll definitely consider it for now. However, if more people tell me that they'd want an adaptation of Alfheim, told they way I would have written it, I'll definitely begin writing it! Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: When a player is killed within a safe zone, Asuna and Kirito disband from their party for a couple of days to find out how and why it happened.


	5. Chapter 5: Murder in the Safe Zone

Chapter 5: Murder in the Safe Zone

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Five! There will be some slight differences in this chapter.

* So, with that being said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _March 6_ _th_ _, 2024 – Fifty Sixth Floor: Pani_

Well, a couple weeks or so had passed since the whole thing with Silica and helping her bring Pina back to life. In that time, Klein and Asuna were invited to join the Knights of the Blood Oath. And, they accepted. When I asked if there was any room for Sachi and I, Asuna said that they hadn't mentioned us, even though we clearly had talent, but we still didn't receive invitations, nor were we likely to.

Seeing as they were now part of the Knights of the Blood Oath, Asuna began wearing their colors. She wore the same white stockings, boots and red skirt, but now wore a white tunic that had red stripes and a red cross just below her waist, which was the symbol of the Guild. The tunic also left her shoulder area bare, similar to how some of Silica's outfits did. Surprisingly enough, Klein chose to wear his traditional getup, rather than wearing their colors.

He was wearing his usual outfit: white pants, a red shirt with a black armored vest over that and black gloves. And of course, the signature bandana wrapped around his forehead. And when I asked him about it, this is what I remember from that conversation:

" _Bro, you don't have to do it." I had said._

" _Do what?" he had asked._

" _I know you're just wearing your old getup because Sachi and I weren't accepted into the Knights of the Blood Oath. If you really want to wear their colors and make it known that you are a part of them, that's okay with me."_

" _No, that has nothing to do with it, Kiri-Dude. I just don't like their colors. I don't think red and white go together very well. At least not as well as red and black, at least."_

" _Kiri-Dude? Really? Is that really what you're going to call me now?"_

 _He chuckled._

" _I may have just come up with it on the spot. Well, what about what I said?"_

" _I uh, never thought about it that way. I didn't even think about you not liking the color scheme. No hard feelings?"_

" _Yeah, of course man. Why would there be hard feelings?"_

" _I don't know. Now it just seems like a weird statement for me to make and it wasn't even true."_

" _Yeah, man. Like I said, there's no hard feelings between us. It was an honest question, I understand why you asked."_

" _Yeah, I was asking because Asuna is wearing their colors."_

" _Well, Asuna has a unique taste in things."_

" _Yeah, I won't argue with that."_

 _We both laughed after I said that._

Anyway, today we were holding a meeting concerning the details of how we were going to defeat the boss on the current floor we were on. Most of the higher leveled Guilds and solo players would be there, so naturally Klein, Asuna and some of the Knights came to the meeting. Sachi and I went, too. I think anyone could come to the meetings, but don't quote me on that.

There were lots of murmurs among us, many of the players at the meeting were unsure of what to do. Even I didn't know what to do and I was a pretty good strategist. After all, it was my idea when I came up with the idea of how we would ambush Rosalia. All of a sudden, Asuna slammed her hand down onto the table that they had placed papers and maps on.

"Lure it into the village. That's how we'll get the boss!"

There were several gasps in response to her idea. Even I was surprised by her idea. Was she thinking clearly? There was a pretty big piece that she was missing in her plan that she had just proposed. Sachi eventually spoke up before I could.

"That's not a good idea."

Asuna looked back at Sachi, with what I could only assume was a challenging gaze. However, she didn't say anything.

"Asuna, if we do that, the boss will go after the villagers…" I spoke up, only to get interrupted.

"Yes, that's the idea. And while the boss is busy killing NPCs, we can attack _it_ and kill it."

Even Klein didn't look too enthusiastic about her idea.

"Hey, he's right! NPCs aren't just objects! They're different than just rocks or trees! Look, they're…" he spoke, only to get interrupted by her like I was.

"You think that they're alive, like we are, don't you?"

Klein looked surprised by what she said and so was I, while being slightly offended by what she had said.

"In this game, they are nothing more than just objects. And unlike us, if they're killed, they can always just respawn." She continued.

I was still offended by what she had said and was going to say something, when Klein beat me to it once more.

"Look, he doesn't like the idea and honestly, neither do I. So, I don't think I can…"

Asuna looked at Klein with hateful eyes.

"I'm running this operation, okay? And friend or not, I'm still second in command of The Knights of the Blood Oath. So, are you challenging me?"

There was a slightly scared look in Klein's eyes. He finally spoke again, the fear only slightly leaving his eyes.

"No. Sorry, Ma'am."

That's another thing that I've neglected to mention. When they first joined up, the Knights had only recently lost their second in command. So, given her skill level, which yes, she had definitely improved nicely since that first boss fight, they decided that she was a perfect fit for the job. Asuna turned to face me.

"And you. You will obey my orders, like them or not. Got it?"

I just stared at her, not saying a word. I didn't like the look of determination that she had in her eyes. I backed up towards the exit of the cave that we had set up the meeting in, before turning around and walking towards the exit.

"Hey!" she called out to me with irritation. "I asked you a question! So, are we clear?"

I turned my head to look back at her, a smirk forming on my face.

"Crystal." I said, before I left the cave.

Once I was outside in the clearing, I just stood there and thought to myself. Sometime during all of this, Sachi came up to me. And as rude as it may sound, I dismissed her, telling her that I wanted this time to think and to come find me later. Pretty soon, the meeting was adjourned, and Klein came out to talk to me. Before he could open his mouth, I beat him to it.

"Dude, what the hell was that in there?"

"What was what?"

I turned to look at him with an annoyed look on my face.

"What was with you and Asuna in there?! Why were you sucking up to her like that?!"

Klein gave me a look of surprise and what looked like mild fear.

"Hey, it's not my fault that she's the second in command! Besides, she can be kinda scary sometimes!"

"She's a girl, Klein! How can she be that scary? And besides, isn't it your fault for not realizing how mean and scary she is before you guys joined The Knights of the Blood Oath?"

He looked slightly offended now.

"Well, she can be plenty scary! And besides, she was never that mean or scary when we were still running in the party!"

"We're technically still running the party, Klein. Even if you and Asuna are with a Guild now, Sachi and I are still interested in traveling with you guys. And besides, maybe she never allowed that side of herself to show because no one was ever in charge of the party?"

"No one was ever in charge. If any one of us needed help with something, the rest of us would dedicate our time to help out. That was the original idea, wasn't it?"

I crossed my arms over my chest as I turned away from him.

"What's the matter with you? You're acting really distant. What's got you so uptight?"

I let out a sigh.

"Nothing, man. I just wish that Sachi and I got into the Guild. Having more people to rely on would make it really easy to make sure she's protected."

He regarded me with a curious gaze.

"You never told us what's so important about her."

"You wouldn't understand if I told you."

"Well, maybe if you did tell me, I'd be able to understand."

I shot him a dangerous look and he backed away out of fear.

"Okay, okay. I won't ask again. Sorry."

"Hey." A new voice joined the conversation.

I looked up to see Agil approaching us.

"Oh, hey. Sup, Agil?" I greeted him.

"What he said." Klein greeted him as well.

Agil regarded Klein and then looked at me.

"What's with you and Asuna?"

"Huh?" I asked.

"You and the second in command. You're always getting into it. And _not_ in the good way."

I blushed bright red as Klein chuckled next to me.

"Kirito's got a girlfriend!" he said in a singsong tone, before I slugged him in the arm.

"Ow! Oh right, being punched in the arm doesn't hurt." He replied, referencing the day we first met.

"Shut up." I replied as I turned back to Agil. "What can I say? She and I just don't have good chemistry, I guess."

I turned back to Klein.

"But you guys took my advice. You got an invitation to join The Knights of the Blood Oath and you took it. It just surprises me that she became a floor-clearing badass as fast as she did."

Klein nodded.

"Yeah, it surprises me too, Kiri-Dude."

I let out a sigh.

"For the love of God, if you're going to call me that, could you please not use that name in the presence of other people?"

"Why, what's wrong with it?"

"It's frankly kind of embarrassing to hear you call me that!"

"Ah, I don't see what's wrong with it!"

Agil cleared his throat. We both turned to look at him.

"Well, if you both are done bickering, I just wanted to drop by and tell you that the shop is always open to you guys, since I haven't seen you down there in a while."

"Yeah, sorry about that, man. We've been a little busy recently. We'll try to come in when we get the chance." I said.

"No sweat. I just hope to see you guys again soon. Take care, now."

"We'll do that. You do the same, Agil."

He nodded, waving at us as he walked away.

 _April 11_ _th_ _, 2024 – Fifty Ninth Floor: Danac_

It was a sunny day. You know what? No, saying that it was a sunny day wouldn't cut it. Naturally a day like this had to be enjoyed. So, Klein and I were lying down in a clearing underneath a tree, just relaxing. Well, we were when we got interrupted.

"What are you two doing?"

I opened my eyes and looked up, to see Asuna standing in the shade of the tree behind us. I let out a sigh and laid back before closing my eyes once more.

"Oh, it's just you. What does it look like we're doing?"

Klein spoke before she could.

"We're napping. Or trying to, at least. And we're lying no less than five feet apart, because we're not gay."

I raised my eyebrow at what he said, but I said nothing.

"Everyone in the Assault Team's working their butts off to clear the dungeon." She spoke again. And where do I find you two? Why, out here taking a nap, of course! Jeez, Kirito. And I thought that a player like you would take our situation more seriously."

"Asuna?" I asked.

"Yeah?"

"Shut up and take a minute."

She went silent. Then, she kicked me in the shoulder.

"You jerk!"

"Ah, see? You didn't listen. I told you to shut up and take a moment."

"Why you…"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, as Klein interrupted her.

"Will you just do what he says? God, you two bicker like an old married couple!"

There was silence again after that. Klein then let out a cry of irritation and I needed no help in guessing that she had kicked him, too.

"So, I'm going to say it again. Just shut up for a second and take a moment." I said.

"Take a moment with what?!" she said with irritation.

"Tsk-tsk." I grunted. "Someone wasn't listening again."

I shouldn't have said that. All I got was another kick in the shoulder.

"Can you tell me what you want me to know without being snarky?"

I let out a sigh.

"I bet that you didn't know that this is Aincrad's nicest season. Today's weather is at its optimum setting."

"Huh?"

That was all she said, and I was surprised, as I expected to get more words out of her.

"It would be a shame to have to go to work on a day like this. Who knows? Tomorrow it could be cloudy, rainy, thundering, or all three." I said.

"Whatever. I can't believe you two. Do you guys even understand what's going on? Everyday here is another lost in the real world."

"You don't think we know that?" Klein chimed in. "Besides, we have to do something to numb the stress of our situation. And right now, that something just happens to be napping in the shade."

I let out a sigh.

"What he said."

"How can I let you guys get away with this?"

"Why beat 'em when you can join 'em?" Klein asked.

"Huh?"

I spoke up.

"No, he's right. Right now, we're not in the real world. We're alive in Aincrad."

Asuna was silent.

"See? You can't possibly tell me that the breeze doesn't feel good. And the sun?"

"Oh, come on! The weather's always the same here!"

I let out another sigh and yawned.

"Look, I'm not going to argue with you. All I'm going to say is if you laid down on the grass for a little bit, you'd understand."

After I said that, I went back to relaxing. In fact, I relaxed a little too much. In no time at all, I had dozed off.

 _One Hour Later_

I opened my eyes after only what had seemed to be a few minutes passed. I sat up and yawned, after that I didn't really move at all. Eventually I looked to my right and freaked out a little bit. Asuna was lying in the space between Klein and I, and she was fast asleep, nearly in a fetal position.

"So, she fell asleep, huh?" Klein asked.

I looked at Klein, who was sitting up, with one leg stretched out and his other leg pointed upwards. He rested an arm on that knee and was using his other arm to hold himself up.

"Yeah. She must be tired." I said.

Just then, members of the Holy Dragon Alliance walked by and stopped when they saw the three of us.

"Well, would you look at that? Taking a nap in the middle of the day." One of them said,

"Some people sure got it easy." Another said.

I was just about to let them pass, when Klein did something that surprised me.

"We got here first, jackasses!" he yelled at them, his face turning red from anger. "Find your own napping spot!"

They all were in a hurry to get away from us. I looked at Klein with shock as he chuckled as his face returned to it's normal look. In the time that he had opened his mouth and between when they had run off, Asuna had flinched in her sleep, yet she didn't wake up.

"Man, I love doing that." He said, still chuckling.

"Have you lost your mind? You could have woken Asuna!"

He turned his head to look at me.

"Yeah, you're right. I guess I could have. But that reminds me, we should really wake her up."

He reached his hand out to wake her, but I interjected.

"No, man! Don't wake her up! If you wake her up, all she'll do is order us around! Besides, she needs some sleep. She's been working herself too hard. Let her sleep for a while. Go get some fresh air. Take the day off."

He just stared at me. After a minute or so of silence, he finally spoke.

"Really?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, really. Don't let it be about her, Klein. It's about you! Go do what you want to do!"

He gave me a strange look.

"But what if she wakes up?"

"Don't worry if she wakes up. If she wakes up and asks where you're at, I'll tell her I let you know. And hey, if she decides that she wants to strangle me, then so be it. I'll take the blame."

He just continued to look at me.

"But what will you do?" he finally asked.

"Don't worry about me! I'm probably not going to go back to sleep. I can message Sachi and ask her to come by and I'll just chat with her for a while. So, go on, get out of here before she wakes up."

Klein continued to look at me with a hesitant look on his face before he smiled.

"Right." He said as he got up. "Thanks, Kiri-Dude!"

I smiled and watched him go. Once he was gone, I looked back down at Asuna's sleeping form. She looked so relaxed as she slept, so happy, compared to the Asuna that we knew when she was awake. I let out a sigh before I opened up my friends list.

"I suppose that we all need to relax every once and a while." I said to myself.

 _Later That Evening_

A few hours had passed, and we were now in twilight, as the sun had begun to set. Sachi and I sat on the low stone wall that surrounded the clearing that we had slept in earlier that day, just talking.

"It surprises me how long she's slept at this point." Sachi said. "Asuna isn't one to just relax."

"I know. Usually she…" I had began speaking, only to be interrupted by a sneeze coming from behind us.

Sachi and I both looked behind us, to see Asuna beginning to stir. She rolled out of the fetal position onto her hands and knees as she pushed herself upward off of the ground. Once she was up and sitting on her knees, she looked around as if she were confused.

She looked over in our direction and her eyes finally fell onto Sachi and I. Her eyes widened as she gasped with surprise.

"Wha… What… W…?" were the only things she could say.

I felt compelled to smile at her and so, I did, as Sachi did the same.

"Morning, Nappy." I said as I chuckled. "You slept like a rock!"

She didn't take kindly to that. Her hand had traveled to her rapier in its sheath at lightning speed and she was actually halfway through unsheathing it when she stopped. She put it back all the way in its sheath let out several grunts, as her hand traveled back and forth from its handle, as if she were unsure of what to do. She finally worked up the courage to speak, but she did so in a whisper, which made it difficult to understand her.

"You get one meal…"

"What?"

She stood up straighter.

"One meal! All you can eat, my treat. Then we'll be even, deal?"

I stared at her, as a bead of sweat ran down my cheek.

"O-Okay." I finally said.

"Can I come, too?" Sachi asked with a bright look on her face, trying to help the mood.

Asuna was silent for a second or two.

"Sure." She said at last in a calm tone.

I'll admit, the calm tone spooked me a little bit. She began to look around, before she looked back at us, her eyes trained on me.

"Where did Klein go?" she asked before her eyes narrowed. "Did you let him go?"

I nervously nodded before speaking.

"Yeah."

She just stared at me. And then a small smile appeared on her face.

"Okay. Let's go." She said as she walked towards the exit to the clearing.

I looked over at Sachi with confusion and slight fear, but she just shrugged and hopped off of the low wall.

"Come on, Kirito." She said.

 _Later – Fifty Seventh Floor: Martin_

Asuna, Sachi and I sat at a table in one of the cafés, on the Fifty Seventh Floor in the town of Martin. We hadn't been in for all that long yet. All was quiet between the three of us. Until Asuna finally spoke.

"Well, anyway, thank you. For today."

"Why?" I asked.

I couldn't help but ask why she was thanking me. She looked at me with confusion or even with hurt, as if she didn't understand why I had to ask.

"For keeping an eye on me."

"Oh, sure."

Sachi spoke up next.

"You really slept for a while, didn't you? You must have been really tired!"

Asuna's cheeks turned light pink.

"The Knights of the Blood Oath have been making me work harder than I ever have before. I haven't had time to sleep that much."

"Then why don't you just take a break?" I chimed in.

She looked up at us.

"I can't. The Knights are too busy, they need all of the help that they can get. And besides, I don't want to quit!"

She smiled as she said that.

"I like to take comfort in the fact that if I'm helping as much as I am, we'll get out of here and we'll all go home faster than we would at the pace we had been moving at!"

I had to admit that she had a point. But was I going to? Of course, not. I wasn't about to let Asuna know that she was right. However, Sachi would.

"You do have a point. But do you really have to do it by yourself?"

"What? Do you two plan on joining the Knights of the Blood Oath anytime soon?"

I think Asuna meant that to be a joke, but Sachi shrunk back a little. Asuna saw how she reacted and looked down.

"Sorry."

I gave her a look of sympathy.

"Is everything okay, Asuna?"

She folded her hands on the table.

"The towns are supposed to be safe zones and unless you agree to a duel, a player can't attack or kill you. But when you're asleep, you're vulnerable."

I felt something ping in my chest.

"Yeah, now we've got Player-Killers who can cheat the duel system. Duels are normally supposed to be tests of strength, not a fight to the death. But even if you duel in a safe zone, your HP is still going to go down based on the damage you take."

"All a sleep PKer has to do is manipulate a sleeping player's finger into clicking the OK button. The duel begins like normal, but the sleep PKer is doing all of the attacking. God knows how many times it's happened. So, anyway, thank you."

Before I could speak, Sachi beat me to it.

"Oh, you don't have to thank him! Kirito is just really nice! He's really protective over those he cares about! He's especially protective of me!"

Asuna looked at Sachi and then glanced at me.

"Why are you so protective over her anyway? What happened between you two to make you so protective over her?"

My face reddened, while Sachi's face remained unchanged and Asuna got a nervous look in her eyes, as if she suspected that she had crossed a line. I still wasn't comfortable explaining our backstory to them.

"I don't want to talk about it." I finally said.

"Why?"

"Because, I just don't want to. But don't worry, Asuna. If the day comes that I do want to talk about it, you and Klein will be the first ones to know."

She looked back down at the table and there was silence once again. The silence was however interrupted by a scream coming from outside of the café. All three of us stood up from the table. Sachi looked at me and nodded, as if she were thinking the same thing. All three of us quickly ran out of the café and to the source of the scream. We ended up in a plaza like square, sort of like the one in the Town of Beginnings.

We all gasped with surprise to what we saw. There was guy in full battle armor, hanging outside of the window of a bell tower, with a sword impaled into his chest. Several gasps of shock swept through the crowd of people who had gathered in the square.

"What do we do?" Sachi asked with fear.

Asuna and I looked at each other, both of us trying to come up with a plan.

"He has to pull it out…" I whispered to myself.

"What?" Asuna asked with confusion.

I looked at her and then up at the guy hanging out of the window.

"Hurry, pull it out!" I yelled up to him.

He looked down at me and then back at the sword, before attempting to pull it out.

"I'll cut him down and you catch him!" Asuna said before running into the tower.

"I'll go with you!" Sachi said as she followed.

After they were gone, I ran underneath the window to catch him once he fell.

"Help's on the way!" I called up to him.

As he continued hanging there, he only began to panic even more. He continued to try to pull the sword out, which only caused him to yell out in pain. Suddenly he stopped trying and his entire body went limp. He exploded into thousands of glittering shards and the sword just hovered there for a minute, before falling and clattering against the stone ground. The only thing left in the air was the noose that he had been hanging from. My mind began exploding with thoughts.

 _The only way he could have died in the safe zone is if he was beaten in a duel! That means…_

I began to look around the area.

"Everyone! Look for the player with the "Winner" icon!" I exclaimed.

Everyone looked around, but they looked so dazed that I didn't think it would be of much help.

"Kirito!" I heard Sachi call from above.

"There's no one up here! The room's empty!" Asuna called down next.

I continued looking through the crowd of people, but I was unable to find the player with the "Winner" icon. I was frustrated, and I didn't know what to do. Not knowing what else I could do down there, I picked up the sword that the guy had been impaled with and walked into the tower and up to the level Asuna and Sachi were on. Sachi spoke first.

"Anything?"

I shook my head. As we all stood there in silence, I flipped the sword over in my hands and began to inspect it.

"What's that?"

I looked up at Sachi.

"It's the sword that was impaled into that guy's armor. I'm looking it over to see if there's anything unique about it. Asuna, do you have any idea how this could of happened?"

"Well, there's always the obvious." She said without looking at me. "There was a duel and the other guy impaled the victim with that spear. Then, he put a noose around his neck and pushed him out the window."

She looked over at me.

"Isn't that what you'd say?"

"Yeah, that's what I thought. But I couldn't see the "Winner" Icon on anyone."

"Well, it had to be a duel! It's a safe zone and a player died! A duel's the only thing it could have been!"

I said nothing. Sachi looked like she wanted to speak but she never did.

"Or maybe not. Either way, we can't ignore this." Asuna spoke again.

I nodded.

"You're right."

"As it is, a player takes huge risks going outside a safe zone. But if someone's found a way to PK inside, no one's going to be safe in the towns, either."

"Yeah, I know."

"I guess we won't be going back to the front lines any time soon."

I heard footsteps and I looked up with surprise to see her walking towards me. She stopped a couple feet from me and put out her hand.

"Listen, you're going to work with me until we solve this thing. Until we do, there won't be any time for napping, okay?"

"Okay."

I took her hand and we shook.

"I can help, too!" Sachi chimed in.

Asuna turned to face her.

"No, I'll just need Kirito. Besides, you weren't sleeping on the job, so there's nothing that we have to get even on."

I gasped with confusion when she said that.

"But what happened to you buying me dinner? I thought that made us even!"

She turned to look at me.

"It did. But I changed my mind. Now there's a murderer on the loose and that seems like a better way for us to be even than me buying you lunch. So, until we figure this out, we aren't even."

I was a little bit angry on how she had decided to go back on her word, but I didn't say anything about it.

"Okay."

Asuna turned back away from me, looking as though she were thinking.

"But to be fair, you were the one who was napping." I found myself saying.

She froze completely, not moving from where she stood. Then, she whirled around and backhanded me across the face.

"Ow! Come on, it's just the truth!" I said as I rubbed the red mark that now stood out on my cheek.

Sachi just stood there, chuckling. At that point, I heard running footsteps coming up the stairs that led up to the level we were on. I turned towards the noise and eventually Klein ran into the room.

"I came as soon as I heard! Is it true? Was a player murdered in town?"

I gave him a look of confusion.

"How did you know?"

"Sachi messaged me and told me what happened."

I looked over at Sachi, who meanwhile avoided my gaze. I looked back at Klein.

"Yeah, there was a player that was killed somehow. Asuna and I are going to figure it out."

"You guys want help with that? I'm sure that Sachi and I could do something to help you guys!"

I shook my head before Asuna could answer.

"Thanks, but we've got this. Besides, I seem to recall that I let you have the day off."

Beside me, I could swear that I saw Asuna's face redden with anger. I couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"Hey man, seriously, we got it. Why don't you and Sachi just run along. We'll catch up with you two, later."

"Are you sure? This is…"

I cut him off before he could say something that would make Asuna want to hit me again.

"Dude, just run along. Asuna and I can handle this."

Klein and Sachi exchanged glances, before he looked back at me.

"Whatever you say, Kiri-Dude."

He then turned around and walked back towards the stairwell.

"Come on, Sachi. Let's not keep the two detectives busy."

Sachi waved at us, before following Klein down the stairs. Once they were gone, Asuna looked over at me.

"So, where do you think we should start?"

I looked down at the sword in my hand as I shrugged.

"I don't know. But I think I'd like to figure out if there's anything unique about this sword."

"And how do you intend to do that?"

I looked up at her with a grin on my face.

"I think I know just the guy to look at this. Come on."

I turned around and walked down the stairs before she could protest. We walked back outside, where the square was still in a bit of a panic.

"Listen up!" I exclaimed, silencing the panics. "Did anyone see what happened before that player died? If someone did, please speak up!"

There were a lot of murmurs amongst the crowd, but no one said anything. Eventually, a girl with longer, purple hair stepped forward and approached Asuna and I.

"Sorry. I can imagine how frightened you are." Asuna spoke first. "Could you tell us your name?"

The girl looked freaked out, but answered nonetheless.

"Sure. My name is Yolko."

I spoke next.

"Was that you? I mean, were you the one who screamed?"

A look of shame crossed Yolko's face.

"U-Uh-huh. I-I knew him. His name was Kains and we used to belong to the same Guild. Anyway, we came here together today. We were going to have dinner somewhere in town. But we got separated in the plaza."

She began to tear up as she spoke.

"I looked around for him and then I saw him hanging from that balcony. I don't…"

She stopped speaking and Asuna stepped forward to comfort her.

"Was there anyone else up there?" she asked as she rubbed Yolko's back.

"For a second there, I'm not sure, but I think that I did see someone standing behind Kains." She said in a muffled voice.

Asuna looked at me with a look in her eyes. The look in her eyes agreed with what I was feeling. I was disturbed at the thought of someone murdering Kains.

 _What had Kains done to someone to make them want to murder him?_

"And this person, had you seen them before?" Asuna asked.

Yolko looked down at the ground for a few seconds, before she shook her head. I spoke next.

"Um, I know this is hard for you, but think back and try to remember. Could there be someone, anyone with the reason to kill him?"

Yolko looked visibly upset by my question and Asuna gave her a look of sympathy. I just stood there, looking at both of them, unsure of where to go from here. Suddenly, she opened her eyes, looking more upset than she had been a second ago. I suddenly didn't feel like asking her anymore questions with the mood that she was in.

"Yolko, my partner and I can understand if you don't want to talk right now. Could we offer to walk you back to your home? Or wherever you've been staying?"

Yolko kept looking at the ground. Eventually she looked back up at me and nodded.

 _Later_

 _Yamahya Lodge_

We had arrived at the lodge that Yolko was staying at.

"Thanks for walking me back. Sorry if it's out of your way."

"No worries." Asuna said. "But we'd like to talk to you again tomorrow, if you're feeling up to it."

"Okay." She said in an uncertain voice.

She then bowed in farewell, before she shut the door. Asuna looked back at me.

"So, what now?"

I looked at the ground with uncertainty.

"You mentioned that you may know a guy who can look at that spear, right?"

I looked up and nodded at her.

"Okay. Then maybe that's where we start."

 _Later_

 _Fiftieth Floor: Algade_

Asuna and I walked through the town of Algade, which was located on the Fiftieth Floor of Aincrad. We came to a stop in front of Agil's shop, just as the door to said location opened.

"Here we are." I said as a guy in armor carrying a spear walked out of the shop.

"Thanks, man!" Agil called from inside. "Come back anytime!"

The man let out a grumble of a reply as I approached the door. I turned around to see that Asuna was sort of just standing there. With a smile on my face, I signaled for her to follow me. Once I moved forward into Agil's shop, she followed this time.

"Looks like you're still running all the suckers down with those hard deals of yours." I spoke as I entered the shop.

He turned to around to face me.

"No way. Kirito!" he spoke before approaching the counter. "Buy cheap and sell cheap. That's my motto. I'm a business man, you know that."

"That selling cheap part is a lie, though."

We bumped fists as I said that.

"Don't go slandering my good name, brother."

As he said that, Asuna finally walked in. As soon as she did, Agil's face flushed and a look of shock came onto his face. Within a flash it seemed, Agil had gotten me into a headlock and had pulled me halfway over the counter. He looked at me as I looked back at him, now with a shocked look on my face as well.

"What the hell has gotten into you?! What are you doing hanging out with Asuna?! I thought you guys didn't get along?!"

Before I could answer, a familiar face leaned across the counter to look at us.

"Would you guys like to tell me what the big deal is?" the girl in question asked.

I let out yell of surprise as I bolted upright, elbowing Agil in the jaw in the process, which caused Asuna to start laughing. Agil recovered and looked at Asuna, before letting out a huff.

"I'm sorry." She said as she wiped tears from her cheeks. "It must be really rude to laugh at someone's pain."

"You have no idea." He said. "What are you two doing together anyway?"

I stepped in this time.

"For better or worse, Asuna and I have partnered up for the time being. Um, could we talk to you in the back room for a while?"

Agil looked back at me with reluctance, but he eventually gave in and led us to the back room. Once we were in there, I explained the situation to him to the best of my ability, with the occasional interjection from Asuna. He stayed silent a while after we were done explaining, before he finally spoke.

"His HP dropped to zero in a Safe Zone?" he asked. "You sure it wasn't a duel?"

"Well, no one saw a Winner Icon." I said.

"We can also rule out the murder being a sleep PK." Asuna chimed in. "He was walking with Yolko just before it happened."

"And besides, his death was too elaborate to be some random duel. The PKer that did this had it planned out, we're sure of that at least. And then, there's this."

I looked down at the sword. Agil grunted as he picked it up off of the table. He began his analysis of the weapon as Asuna watched, while I stared at the floor.

"A player made this." He said at last.

Asuna and I both gasped with surprise.

"Really?" I asked as I looked up.

"Who was it? Can you tell?" Asuna asked next.

"Grimlock. Never heard that name before. It's not one of the top blacksmiths, that's for damn sure. As far as I can tell, there's nothing special about this."

"Yeah, but it's something to go on, right?"

"Mmm-Hmm." I nodded. "Is there like an item name or something?"

"You'll love it. "Guilty Thorn". There's a name for you. It kind of fits though, don't you think?"

He placed Guilty Thorn back on the table. I picked up and looked at it.

"Seriously? Guilty Thorn?"

I continued to look it over, but I couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. And then, I got the idea to do something that I probably shouldn't have attempted.

"Here goes." I said as I pointed the blade at my gloved hand and got ready to attempt to cut myself.

"Wait, stop!" Asuna exclaimed as she leapt forward.

But it was too late. The end of the blade made contact with my hand, but it didn't cut through the glove or the skin. It also took me a minute to notice that Asuna's hand was gripping my wrist. I looked at her.

"What's the matter?"

Asuna looked back at me with an irritated look.

"What do you mean, what's the matter?! Are you out of your mind?! That thing's already killed one person!"

"I know. But we need to find out what this thing's capable of, don't we?"

"Would you stop being so reckless?"

She took Guilty Thorn from me without another word.

"As for this, Agil would you please hang on to this for us?"

She dropped it in his hands before he could answer.

"Mmm, yeah…"

She stood up straight again, with a huff.

"What?" I asked.

"Come on, let's go."

"What? But we haven't been here for that…"

It didn't matter what I said. Asuna was already heading out the door, towards the shop's exit. I got up in an effort to keep up with her.

"Wait up, Asuna! Well, I guess I'm heading out Agil! Bye!"

I left the back room of the shop, leaving Agil chuckling over the dispute he had just seen between Asuna and I. I ran until I finally caught up with her.

"Asuna, what was that all about?"

She didn't answer.

"Asuna?"

She turned to look at me and I saw a dangerous look in her eyes. The look scared me, and I was sure that she would yell at me or hit me again, although it wouldn't make sense, seeing as what I had pulled in there wasn't a bad thing. But she didn't do anything of the sort.

"We're calling it a night. You should probably head home. I'll see you in the morning."

She walked off without another word, leaving me standing there in surprise.

"Asuna?"

"Good night, Kirito."

I stood there and watched her walk away, dumbfounded. Eventually I decided that it'd be wise to take her advice. Without another thought, I headed home for the night.

 _The Next Morning_

The next morning, Yolko met with Asuna and I in a café. Asuna looked wide awake, while I myself was still struggling to be attentive. I hadn't gotten a lot of sleep last night, so staying awake was a bit of a chore.

"So, uh Yolko, we were wondering if you've ever heard the name "Grimlock?" Asuna finally broke the silence.

Her eyes grew with shock and she seemed ready to freak out. But she didn't. Eventually she regained a straight face and looked down at the table.

"Yes, I have. Actually until a few months ago, he was in a Guild with me and Kains."

I looked at Asuna with surprise, suddenly feeling wide awake. I looked back at Yolko.

"Listen, we took the spear that impaled Kains to an appraiser. We had a friend of mine go over it carefully. And we found out that Grimlock made it."

Yolko's eyes widened with shock once again and she covered her mouth.

"Can you think of any reason why he did?" I asked.

She looked down as she moved her hands from her mouth and onto the table.

"Yes, I can. I should have told you everything yesterday. It's just, I couldn't…"

She closed her eyes as she spoke.

"It's something I've been trying really hard to forget. But now, I have no choice. I should tell you about how my Guild was destroyed. When we formed it, Golden Apple was the name we chose. Six months ago, we killed a rare monster and it dropped a powerful ring that raised a player's agility by twenty. Some of us wanted to keep it for the Guild, others wanted to sell it and split the earnings. We couldn't agree and in the end, we put it to a vote."

She took a breath before she continued speaking.

"It was five-to-three in favor of selling it. Our leader, Griselda, took it to a large town on the front lines. She was going to sell it to a broker and was staying overnight. We waited and waited, but she never came back. It wasn't until later that our worst fears had come true. Griselda was dead. To this day, I still don't know how she died."

"No one's going to leave a Safe Zone with a rare item like that." I spoke. "Too risky. Do you think someone could have pulled a sleep PK on her?"

Asuna looked in my direction.

"Not if it was six months ago. That method is still sort of new."

I leaned back in my chair and put my fist to my chin.

"You're right. But she wasn't a random victim, either. No, the killer was after the ring. It has to be someone who knew she had it. Which means…"

Yolko looked away from us as I spoke.

"The killer is one of the seven others in our Guild, yes."

She looked down after speaking, before I spoke again.

"We have our suspects, now we just have to find out who didn't want to sell the ring."

Asuna turned to look at me.

"I doubt the killer waited until after Griselda sold the ring. She was killed before she sold it. That's my guess."

I nodded.

"Probably."

I turned my attention back to Yolko.

"Tell us what you know about Grimlock."

"Well for starters, he was Griselda's husband. Oh, but not in real life, just in the game. Griselda was a powerful swordswoman, she was beautiful and smart. Grimlock was kind and I can't remember a day when he wasn't smiling. They made a great couple and got along as husband and wife. If Grimlock's really the one who murdered Kains yesterday, he's probably going after the three who voted against selling the ring."

She stopped speaking and looked down at the table, then back up, while avoiding eye contact with us for a few seconds.

"Kains was one of the three who wanted to keep the ring for the Guild. I was the other one."

Asuna and I both grunted with surprise as we stood up straighter.

"Then who's the third person?" I blurted out my next question without thinking.

"The other's a tank, named Schmitt. And he, the last I heard, is on the front lines now with the Holy Dragon Alliance."

I leaned back in my chair once more.

"Schmitt, huh? I've heard that name before…"

Asuna shifted in her chair next to me.

"He's leader of the defense unit of the Holy Dragon Alliance." She said as she faced me. "He's an exceptional lancer."

I closed my eyes and tried to think about what she was saying. I thought about it, until I finally got a mental image of the guy we were talking about.

"Oh yeah, him." I finally spoke again.

"Wait, do you really know Schmitt?" Yolko asked.

"Well, we've worked with him once or twice on a few ops, so I know him a little bit."

Yolko quickly leaned forward, which surprised me.

"I need to see him right away! Could you please take me to him? If he's on the front lines, he probably hasn't heard about the murder!"

She leaned back into her chair, as if she had calmed down a bit.

"He needs to know, before what happened to Kains happens to him."

She sat there in silence after that, as did Asuna and I. I eventually looked at her and when she noticed that I was looking, she looked back and nodded at me. She turned back to Yolko.

"We'll help you get in touch with Schmitt. I know someone in the Holy Dragon Alliance. He'll help us out. We'll visit their HQ."

"But first we should make sure she get's back to the Inn." I said as I looked at her. "Yolko, you have to stay there, okay? Seriously, don't go anywhere until we get back."

"All right."

 _Later_

Later on that day, Asuna and I walked down an alley. We had gotten Yolko back to the Inn and made sure that she was safe. Now, we were on the way to see the guy that Asuna knew.

"Okay, so how do you think a murder like this happened in the Safe Zone?" she asked as we walked.

I put my fingers on my chin as we continued to walk.

"I see three ways it could've happened. Right off the bat, it's possible that it was a fair duel. Or maybe someone took advantage of a bug that combines several kill methods."

"Yeah, I can see that happening. And the third?"

I stayed silent for a second.

"Using something to bypass the detection of a Safe Zone. Some kind of skill, or maybe an item."

I came to stop and so did Asuna.

"No. On second that, that third idea is impossible." I muttered, half to her, half to myself.

"What do you mean?"

"Because, it's unfair. I kinda hate to admit it, but it's true. The rules of SAO are essentially fair for every player in the game. So, there's no way that the game would allow murders in Safe Zones."

"I see."

A thought crossed my mind.

 _Akihiko Kayaba was crazy for locking us in here. But to be fair, he did have a set of terms in a way. There were ten thousand players locked in at the start and more than two hundred and fifty have died by now._

 _Just one player, one player alone if they were powerful enough, could defeat the Hundredth Floor Boss and free us all. Theoretically, any one player could sit here and do nothing, until someone was able to clear the game. So, I don't see why Kayaba would allow such a bug to exist in this game._

I was debating whether or not I should tell Asuna about what I had come up with. But before I could, she spoke.

"Let's get a move on."

She began walking away, leaving me to just stand there in silence for a few seconds. Eventually I perked back up and rushed to catch up with her.

 _Later_

We tracked down Schmitt at his home and once we had done that, we brought Yolko with us to visit him. After Yolko had told him about what happened, he just sat there, tapping his foot in a nervous manner.

"So, that's what killed Kains?" he finally spoke. "And you're sure about the spear? Was it really Grimlock's?"

Yolko looked down.

"There's no doubt." She said.

Schmitt's eyes widened as he stood up with shock.

"Then why would he wait six months to kill him?! Unless… Wait, could he have stolen the ring? Do you think it's possible he killed Griselda after all?"

Schmitt looked nervous, terrified and angry, all at the same time. It was a truly fascinating sight. He sat back down and slammed his hand onto his knee.

"Does Grimlock want to kill the three of us because we didn't want to sell the damn ring? Is that why he's after you and me now?"

"Maybe Grimlock made the spear for someone else from our Guild." Yolko replied. "Maybe their the one's that killed Kains. Or maybe, Griselda's come back from the dead to get her revenge."

Schmitt looked a little shocked and I had to admit, I was a bit surprised myself.

"A player can't kill another player inside a Safe Zone. But something else, like a ghost, could."

Schmitt's eyes widened with shock and he gasped. Even Asuna and I exchanged looks of surprise. Yolko got up from her chair with the same surprised look on her face, along with wide eyes.

"I couldn't sleep at all last night, so I stay up thinking…"

This is where it got a bit disturbing. Yolko had a freakout. And when I say "freakout", I mean _freakout_. She started speaking in a high pitched voice, almost yelling.

"It was everyone's fault! Everyone in the Guild is guilty! Her blood is on all our hands!"

She pressed her hands over her eyes.

"Her fate was sealed when that ring dropped! We shouldn't have voted!"

Yolko pulled her hands away from her eyes, revealing them to be as wide as ever.

"We should've done whatever Griselda told us to do!"

We were all in silence, Asuna nor I dared to say anything. Yolko began to backup towards the open window behind her chair.

"Grimlock was the only one, the only member of the Guild," she spoke in a calm tone once more as she sat on the edge of the windowsill. "Who said we should leave the decision to Griselda. You see, he's the only one of us who can avenge Griselda. He's the only one of our Guild who has the right to avenge her."

Schmitt was shaking in his chair.

"You've got to be kidding. You've got to be kidding!" he said, before covering his eyes. "Not now, after all this time, why kill us now?!"

He stood up, taking his hands off from over his eyes as he did.

"You can't be okay with this, Yolko! How can you accept getting killed over some stupid vendetta?!"

I grabbed his arm and pulled him back a little. He looked at me, looking like he was going to say something. But before he could, an audible squelch was heard in the room. We all looked over at Yolko, where the sound originated, to see that her eyes had widened significantly. My eyes widened, as she stood up, turned and bent over, revealing a small blade protruding from her back.

She moved backwards, maybe being dazed, she didn't know what she was doing. The side of her body collided with the windowsill and she fell out the window. I ran forward. Maybe, just maybe I could have helped her. But was I able to? Of course, not. She had already begun falling out the window as I stepped forward. But nevertheless, I ran to window and stuck my head out, just in time to see her hit the ground below.

"Yolko!" I exclaimed with worry.

Unfortunately, her avatar shattered into thousands of glittering shards, leaving only the dagger she was killed by behind. I gritted my teeth to prevent myself from screaming out with anger. I had failed again. I had failed to protect Yolko. Maybe I wasn't supposed to protect her, but I feel like that just like the Moonlit Black Cats, this was all my fault. And the murderer wasn't going to get off scot-free with this.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's the chapter. I'll be fully honest; this chapter was pretty boring to adapt from the Anime episode. But I guess that's part of it, right? There are going to be episodes that will be exciting to adapt, and others will be boring to adapt. One such case is with episode fourteen, I can't wait to adapt that episode for this story. It'll be much different from the Anime, in terms of how Kirito actually defeats Kayaba and everything that comes after, so I can't wait to publish that chapter a half year from now (hopefully it doesn't take that long).

* But enough of me rambling. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I don't usually ask for it very often, but if you did enjoy the chapter, maybe consider following and favoriting this story? And if you want to submit input, a review never hurt anyone, either. Anyway, I'm going to go though, so have a fantastic day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _KiroZen (Chapter 1): First change of the story, I don't doubt the butterfly effect will occur. Also, this chapter felt a little…shallow, for lack of a better term. Try to give some more depth into the thoughts of the narrating perspective, I feel as though that could help a little._

Thanks, Kiro. Yeah, the butterfly effect will definitely be in effect here. The chapter felt shallow? Shallow how, if you don't mind me asking? I've been trying to give more depth into the narrator's thoughts. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _KiroZen (Chapter 2): Interesting that you made the cream sold from the shop rather than a rare drop, as well as how Kirito and Klein already knew (of) Kibaou before the fight. An inconsistency here though is that Asuna knows that they can see her name, implying she's partied before, but still says it's her first time partying. I'm not sure if you made her more observant or what. And again, narrate their thinking as well, don't just transpose from the anime._

Thanks, Kiro. It's a little bit of both honestly, the cream can be bought and found as a rare drop. I just think the whole cream thing, giving Klein a reason to back away from Kirito and Asuna for a bit led to some interesting developments. In terms of Kibaou, I thought it would make sense of them to know him prior, seeing as Kirito may know a little more, traveling with other people and all of them are relaying information to each other.

I probably should have made it clear that what was going on with Asuna, but it figures it didn't cross my mind. And it is a bit of an inconsistency, I admit. Once again, I am trying to give more depth to the narrator's thoughts. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _KiroZen (Chapter 3): The plot twists thicken. So rather than Furinkazan, it's a band of misfits. Goddammit Keita why._

Thanks, Kiro. By plot twists if you mean how Kirito _didn't_ keep his true level secret and how Sachi actually survived, I didn't really see why they wouldn't want him to travel with them at his level. And I don't really understand why Sachi was killed so early in the Anime. So, I decided to do away with that and keep her around.

And yeah, it's pretty much a band of misfits instead of a Guild that Klein is running. I did decide to kill off Keita just like how he was killed in the Anime, although I may come to regret it in the future. At this time, I feel like Keita could end up being a supporting character, but of course, at the earlier time, I decided to just have him killed off. And it's a bit too late to rewrite that and I don't really want to, at the speed I'm going anyway. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _KiroZen (Chapter 4): "'Well, that's not entirely true,' Sachi said, looking at Sachi." Hold up. "'If you saw through my hiding skill so easily, your detection skill must be really, swordsman.'" HOLD UP. Those aside, not too shabby. My advice for you to go a little more in depth into the narrator's thoughts still stands though. Very good character, keep up the fine work._

Thanks, Kiro. I am a little embarrassed to admit that I may have been half asleep one of the days I was writing that chapter. I was going through some tough stuff then, so I hadn't been sleeping well. I have since gone back and correctly edited those two parts that you mentioned. Thanks for the compliments. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Alex Focker (Chapter 4): Great story so far just wished you didn't make kirito back track or doubt his decision after being very determined on his decision, like the time where kirito vehemently said he won't join Asuna and Klein(though I'm fine with the fact he rejoined them) then doubled back on his decision stating he'll join them again._

Thanks for the review, Alex. I'm glad you like the story. I can understand how you may not like how Kirito went back on his refusal of joining Klein and Asuna. But he came to a personal revelation, that being he couldn't protect Sachi all by himself. That's why he went back to them. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito is frustrated in the wake of a death. Meanwhile, he and Asuna continue to investigate a murder that should be impossible within the game, when a new victim perishes before their eyes.


	6. Chapter 6: Illusionary Avenger

Chapter 6: Illusionary Avenger

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Six! I don't think I have anything really important that needs to be said. So, let's get right into this chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _April 12_ _th_ _, 2024 - Fifty Seventh Floor: Martin_

Yolko's murder once again flashed before my eyes. I was still at the window, leaning out and looking at the ground. I took a breath of anger as I looked around the area outside. I saw a cloaked figure standing on the rooftops a short distance away. The figure turned and began to run across the rooftops. The only thing I knew is that I wasn't going to allow the murderer to get away this time.

"I'm going after him." I said just loud enough for them to hear.

Before Asuna could even say anything, I leapt out the window and somehow managed to land on the rooftop across from the building we were in. I began jumping from rooftop to rooftop, trying to catch up to the murderer, with my hand on the handle of my sword, just in case I needed it. As I ran on the rooftop adjacent to the one he was on, he looked over his shoulder at me.

I got a good look at the attacker's lower face. I could tell that he had light-colored skin. Before I could draw my sword or even command him to stop running, he pulled out a blue teleporting crystal.

"Damn!" I cursed with anger.

In an effort to stop him, I threw some of my throwing knives at him, but only to have them blocked by some kind of dark purple shield.

 _Where the hell does he think he's going?!_

The bells in town began to toll as he teleported away, leaving me in anger.

"Shit." I muttered as I fell backwards, landing on my butt on the rooftop.

My eyes stung and for some reason, I wanted to cry. I pulled my knees to my chest and cupped my hands over my mouth and nose. I willed myself not to cry. I sat there for God knows how long, just thinking about the fact that I had failed again to protect someone. Finally, I realized that I should get back to Asuna and Schmitt. So, I got up from my spot on the roof and began to run back towards the lodge. I opened the door to the room and was already getting berated by Asuna.

"You idiot!" she exclaimed as she slapped me across the cheek. "Why did you just run off like that?! You can't just do that!"

I didn't say anything. She let out a sigh in response.

"Well? What happened?"

I shut the door behind me.

"I lost him. He teleported off somewhere. The system is supposed to protect players inside the Inns. I thought if anywhere, she'd be safe here! Damn it!"

I banged my fist on the wall, causing a purple tag, labeled "Immortal Object" to appear. Meanwhile, Schmitt was freaking out. He may have been crying and he certainly wasn't talking. Or, so I thought.

"That robe was Griselda's." he finally said.

Asuna and I both looked at him with shock. He began shaking as he continued to speak.

"That was Griselda's ghost. She's come back to get revenge on us! Think about it… Only a ghost can PK someone in a Safe Zone!"

He began to laugh hysterically.

"That wasn't a ghost." I said.

Asuna turned to look at me.

"Someone's using the system to kill. That's the only way these murders could have happened in a Safe Zone! I know it!"

She didn't say anything at first as I looked down at the floor and shuddered.

"Kirito? What's wrong?"

I looked up at her and was surprised to see a worried expression on her face. I let out a sigh as I wiped a single tear from my cheek.

"Nothing. Are we done here?"

She turned to look back at Schmitt, who did nothing but laugh and/or cry. She then turned back to me.

"I guess so. But let's make sure he settled in before we go, okay?"

I nodded.

"You go ahead and do that. I'll be waiting outside."

I turned around and walked out through the door before she could have the chance to protest. I was in a bad mood after Yolko's murder. It was reminding me too much of how I lost the Moonlit Black Cats. I knew that Asuna sensed something was wrong, but I didn't want to talk about it. Speaking of Asuna, she was just now coming out the door herself.

"Okay, out with it." She said to me once the door was closed.

"Huh?" I asked, turning to look at her.

She rolled her eyes.

"I know that something's on your mind, Kirito. So, what's wrong?"

I looked down.

"I've just had a thought. And I'm not sure what you'd say…"

"Just spit it out."

I frowned before speaking.

"I was just thinking about how earlier today I thought it was possible for a bug that would allow PKing in Safe Zones."

"And?"

"I came to the realization that Kayaba wouldn't allow a bug like that to exist within his game."

"Why?"

"Because, as crazy as it is for Kayaba to lock ten thousand people in this game and wait for someone, if it just the last player standing to beat the final boss to game, I don't think he'd allow something to unfairly kill players. It doesn't make any sense. Kayaba may be crazy, but I don't think he's evil like that. It's not a bug. I think we're dealing with something else entirely."

She just looked at me.

"What?"

She finally shrugged.

"Who knows? Maybe you're right, maybe you're wrong."

She walked ahead of me without another word about it.

"Come on, let's go."

I relunctantly ran to catch up with her.

 _Later_

Asuna and I sat on a park bench in silence, before she spoke.

"I don't know what to think. Was that black-robed figure Griselda's ghost?"

She sat up straighter.

"After seeing two people die mysteriously, I'm starting to think it's possible."

I shook my head in disagreement.

"No. That definitely wasn't a ghost."

She turned to look at me.

"Hmm?"

"I bet my life on it. Why would a ghost need a Teleport Crystal?"

I looked up as a thought suddenly came to my mind.

"Teleport Crystal…"

She continued to look at me.

"What is it? You have something on your mind, don't you?"

I stayed silent for a few seconds.

"On second thought, it's probably nothing."

She stayed silent for a few seconds after that as well.

"Hmm." She grunted at last, before turning to look away from me.

Several more minutes of silence passed, before Asuna handed me something.

"Here." She said.

I let out a grunt of surprise as I looked at her holding something bundled up in purple paper, with her giving me an expectant look.

"What, is that for me?"

She frowned back at me.

"Well, what do you think I'm doing? Showing it off? Are you going to take it or what?"

I hesitantly reached out and took the bundle from her.

"Uh, okay, thanks. Thank you."

I unwrapped it, revealing itself to be a sandwich, with meat, cheese and assorted vegetables, like lettuce.

"Better eat it fast, before it disappears." She spoke as I brought the sandwich close to my mouth. "Its durability is almost at zero."

I looked at her.

"Oh, uh, right!"

I bit into the sandwich as she suggested and found a pleasant surprise. It tasted great. Like really great! I was kind of surprised that Asuna was capable of making a sandwich taste this good. Well, she never really has cooked or made stuff for us, so we never really got the chance to. Usually we just fended for ourselves or ate at cafés in Safe Zones.

"It's delicious." I said as she unwrapped her sandwich.

I chomped back down on the sandwich as she began to eat hers.

"When the heck did you find time to pick this up?" I asked, even though I was convinced that she had made it herself.

"I had a feeling we wouldn't have time for lunch today. So this morning, I packed one for us. Hurry up at eat it, okay?"

I continued to eat.

"Gotta hand it to you, for a second in command of The Knights of the Blood Oath, you rock. Where'd you buy these, anyway?"

"I didn't."

I stopped myself from taking another bite from the sandwich.

"Huh?"

"I made it." She said as I turned my head to look at her. "Yes, I can cook. So, what?"

I murmured to myself, trying to figure out the appropriate thing to say. I finally gulped before speaking.

"Wow, I-I don't even know what to say. I mean, if you're looking for a second career, you'd make a killing selling these!"

I started chuckling to myself. Not even a few seconds later, Asuna stomped her foot on the ground, scaring the crap out of me. She scared me so much that I fumbled with my sandwich, before it fell on the ground. And unfortunately, since its durability was so low, it shattered once it touched the grass. I just stared at the spot in disbelief.

"Guess you should have been eating instead of talking."

I fell onto the ground, onto my hands and knees. I would have spoken, but a thought came to my mind. Something to do with how my sandwich shattered. I was now convinced that the murders just weren't quite what they seemed.

"Are you crying?" Asuna suddenly asked.

"Shh!" I grunted as I put pointed my arm towards her.

I continued to think, before I accepted my theory.

"No way!" I said, surprising Asuna a bit. "That's right! That's it!"

"What's it? What did you just figure out?"

"I… No, wait. _We_ never saw a thing! We just thought we did! But we were seeing something else!"

Asuna sounded surprised.

"I was right! The game doesn't allow killing inside a Safe Zone! There's no weapon or exploit!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Kains and Yolko weren't really murdered! They just made it look like they were!"

"Huh?"

"They're still alive! They have to be! I realized it when my sandwich shattered! The spear or dagger was never directly touching them! It was embedded in their armor or clothes!"

"Wait, they're alive?!"

"Yep, they're alive." I said as I sat back down on the bench. "Both of them."

Asuna sounded confused.

"B-But…"

I decided to explain myself a little better.

"Inside a Safe Zone, a player's HP doesn't deplete on its own. But a durability of an object does. Just like that sandwich you gave me."

"What?"

"That day, the spear was sticking out of Kains' armor. It wasn't draining his HP though. It was draining the durability of his armor."

"But then, his body didn't disintegrate!"

"Yep, it was just his armor. Nothing else. And at the precise second his armor's durability expired, poof. Kains used a crystal to teleport out of his armor."

She just looked at me with no response, so I continued.

"Sure, it looks a lot like what happens when a player dies in the game, only he didn't die."

"Then what happened to Yolko?"

She sounded confused as she spoke.

"Well, the dagger must have been rigged to her back. It must have been all planned out from the beginning."

She frowned a bit, as if the statement troubled her.

"But… we would have seen it!" she insisted.

"Only if she turned around though. Remember, she never turned her back to us, not even once. She kept an eye on her equipment's durability level while she was talking. When it got down to zero, all she had to do was act like she got hit by a dagger thrown from outside the window."

"Who was the person in the black robe you chased?"

"It wasn't Grimlock, I'm pretty sure of that. But Kains… He and Yolko were in it together from the beginning. They had to have been. They figure out how they could use this method to fake their own deaths. Getting people to think they were murdered in a Safe Zone was a calculated twist."

Asuna chimed in at this point with what she had apparently learned from what I had said.

"Everything they did was designed to draw out the person behind Griselda's murder. And to expose him as well. The only way to find out for sure was by faking their deaths and creating an illusionary avenger."

"And Schmitt was the one person they had picked for it, probably since the beginning."

A few moments of silence passed between us before I spoke again.

"Hey, you still have Yolko on your friend list, don't you?"

She looked up before opening her menu and friend list. She scrolled through it for a few seconds.

"Right now, she's in the field on Floor Nineteen. It looks like she's on a small hill, just outside of town."

"I see."

She turned her head to face me again.

"That's it, then. I guess they can handle it from here. I mean, our job's pretty much done now, wouldn't you say?"

A small smile appeared on her face, a rare thing to see, and she nodded.

"Mmm-Hmm."

 _Later_

Before we both called it a night, Asuna and I decided to go to a café for a quick cup of tea. As I stared down at my tea, the sudden realization came to my mind.

"We ended up playing right into Yolko's hands, didn't we?" I asked. "You know what? I don't really mind."

"Yeah, me neither."

I sat there in silence, looking to my right with a small smile on my face.

"Hey." Asuna's voice brought me out of the daze that I was in.

"Hmm?" I grunted as I turned my head to look at her.

"If you were in their Guild, and a super-rare item dropped, what would you have done?"

I leaned back in my chair as I sighed.

 _That's a tough question to answer,_ I thought. _If I were still a solo player, I'd most likely keep to myself. But I'm not a solo player. I'm more of a duo player with Sachi, even though we formed a party with Klein and Asuna._

I eventually reached a verdict.

"I really don't know." I said as I let out a sigh. "If it were just me, it would be an easy decision to make. But it's not just me. If it were an item that enhanced attack speed, agility or anything like that, I would give it to Sachi. But if it were strength or damage enhancement based, I'd be torn between keeping it for myself or giving it to Sachi."

"And you're still now comfortable with telling me why you're so protective of her?"

I flashed Asuna a dark look.

"Right." She said as she looked away. "Sorry."

We sat there in silence for a while until she spoke again.

"Well, if you're at all curious, in The Knights of the Blood Oath, the one who gets the kill gets to keep the item. Those are the rules we have to play by. You know how in SAO, if a player gets a drop, no one knows unless that person reports it? Our way, no one can hoard stuff because we've worked out who gets what ahead of time."

She took a breath before speaking again.

"Also, the rules The Knights play by gives the concept of marriage in this world real meaning. Think about it. If you marry, you have to share your item storage. If you're single, you can hide whatever you want. But you know, when you're married, you can't hide it anymore."

She leaned forward and cupped her hands close to her face.

"I think sharing storage with the person you're married to is wonderfully pragmatic." She continued. "At the same time, I think it's very romantic."

I sat there as a waitress came by to collect our plates and cups.

"Hey." I said.

"Yeah, what?"

As the waitress cleaned up, I spoke. I asked something that in hindsight, I should have realized was a stupid thing to ask.

"So, how many times you been married anyway?"

She really didn't like my question. Now I knew why The Knights of the Blood Oath called her "Lightning Flash Asuna". In no time at all, she had let out an angry grunt, grabbed her fork and was leaning across the table, with her arm extended and all four points of the fork digging into the skin of my face. I let out a scream as I fell over in my chair.

"Wait, I didn't mean it like that!" I exclaimed as I held the spot where I had been lightly stabbed with a fork. "Just give me a second to explain!"

She didn't give me the chance as she stared down at me with a disapproving glare.

"How else could you have meant it, you idiot?!" she exclaimed as she slammed her fork back down onto the table.

"Do you two need to be escorted out of here?" the waitress asked, suddenly appearing right next to us.

Asuna looked at the waitress, with a smile on her face, which suffice to say, surprised me.

"No, I apologize. It seems my partner just never knows when to keep his mouth shut. He won't cause any more problems, I promise."

The waitress looked down at me as I face turned red from embarrassment and anger. Asuna looked down at me as well, with a frown on her face, before looking back at the waitress with a cheery look.

"Don't worry, we'll go ahead and leave now."

The waitress looked back down at me.

"Please do." She said at last as she walked past me.

Asuna looked back down at me with a frown as she helped me up.

"Um, thanks." I said.

"Come on. Let's go before we make a scene." She spoke as she walked past me.

"Um, we had already made a scene!"

She didn't say anything as we walked towards the exit of the café. Once we were outside, we sat down on a bench not too far away from the café.

"Okay, I'm going to give you a chance." She said.

"What?"

She flashed me an angry, disapproving glance.

"I'm going to give you a second chance to explain what you meant just now!"

I made a hurry in an attempt to do so.

"You were talking about how it's romantic and plastic and…"

She interrupted me before I could say anything else.

"I did not say that, you ass!" she exclaimed as she slugged me in the shoulder.

"Agh!"

I just looked at her with a nervous gaze after that.

"What I said was: "romantic and pragmatic"! For your information, the word pragmatic means practical! My God!"

"You think marriage in SAO is… practical?"

"Of course! If you're married, everything's out in the open, you know, because of common storage?"

I let out a light gasp as what she had just said brought me to another realization.

"What?" she asked in an irritated voice.

I brought my fist to my chin as I thought.

"That's it. Common storage."

I turned my head to look at Asuna.

"Okay, say your spouse dies. What happens to the items?"

She looked confused, but nonetheless it looked as though she were thinking. Or trying to, at least.

"Huh?" she asked in a small voice at last.

"Item storage is shared, right? So, when one person dies, what happens to their stuff?"

She looked down for a few seconds.

"If you're talking about Griselda and Grimlock… Hmm, if one of them died…"

"Everything would go to the surviving spouse, right?" I interjected.

She gave me a look of disapproval.

"Hey, don't interrupt my thought process, okay? But, yeah, you have a point! If everything goes to the spouse, then the ring in Griselda's storage…"

She's right, I'm an ass. I interrupted her again.

"Should be sitting in Grimlock's storage, not the killer's! My guess is it's been sitting there this whole time!"

She didn't seem to be affected by the fact that I interrupted her again.

"It was never stolen in the first place!" she said.

"No, it was stolen." I said insistently. "It doesn't matter; it's still there. Grimlock was basically stealing it as soon as he put his plan into action!"

She let out a gasp as she continued to look at me. That's when the bad feeling hit me.

"Where did you say she was at?" I urgently asked.

She looked at me with confusion.

"She was in a field on Floor Nineteen the last time I checked. Why?"

"Is she still there?!" I practically shouted at her.

She was taken back by how I reacted but opened up her friend list nonetheless. She eventually nodded and looked back at me.

"Yeah, she's still there."

I let out a sigh as leaned over and put my head into my hands.

"No, no, no. Not good, not good." I muttered to myself.

"Kirito?" Asuna said my name with worry.

My head bolted back up and I faced her once more.

"I have a bad feeling! I think she could be in danger!"

She gave me a look of confusion.

"I-I-I… I have to go rent a horse!" I said as I got up in a hurry.

"Hey, ease up! What are you talking about?"

I turned to face her.

"I think Yolko is in danger! I'm going to go after her!"

"But what about me?! What am I supposed to do?!"

"Just track my location! And get Klein and Sachi to come help, if you can get ahold of them!"

"You're not on my friend list, jackass!"

I ignored her and kept running. I just hoped that I wasn't too late.

 _Later – Nineteenth Floor: Cross Hill_

I rode my rented horse through Cross Hill as fast as he would go. According to Asuna's intel, I had to be getting pretty close. Finally, after a minute or so of riding, I began to see what looked like four or five players in the distance.

Unfortunately, however, it seemed that I pushed the horse too hard. As soon as we got close to them, he reared up and bucked me off. I landed right on my behind.

"Ow! Damn! I really need to work on that skill." I muttered to myself.

I got up from my spot on the ground.

"Looks like I made it just in time." I said.

I felt like I didn't need the horse at this point, so I slapped it on it's hindquarters, sending it back the way we had come. I began to approach the group, which comprised of Yolko and Kains, I think, and three people that seemed to be a part of Laughing Coffin.

"Now what? I got thirty players from the Assault Team coming. You guys want to stay and fight 'em?"

The guy that seemed to be the leader of the three let out an angry growl. I drew my sword.

"Or, you could try to fight _me_. I think I've earned it. Take your pick."

They stood motionless, as did I. We all stayed silent as we stared at each other for what seemed like several minutes. Eventually one of them snapped their fingers and all of them sheathed their swords, which surprised me. Yolko fell to her knees in front of Kains as this happened.

 _What were they doing?_

"Come on." The leader said in a low voice as be started to walk past me.

His boys did the same and I turned my head to watch them go. They kept walking until the disappeared into the fog ahead. Once they were gone, I sheathed my sword as I sighed. I looked over my shoulder at Kains and Yolko.

"Nice to see you alive again, Yolko." I said.

She looked down at the ground with guilt.

"You won't believe me, but after it was over, I was going to tell you the truth." She said before looking up at me. "I am sorry that we had to trick you to help us out."

A small smile appeared on my face as I looked back at them. Just then, Schmitt spoke from his place on the ground. In fact, I was just now noticing him.

"Hey Kirito, thank you for saving me." He said as he got up on knee. "But how did you figure it out? How would you know that those three would attack us here?"

"I didn't figure anything out. I was acting on a hunch, is all." I said.

I looked back at the two behind me.

"Hey, Yolko, Kains, level with me. You asked Grimlock to make the spear and the knife, didn't you?"

They both looked at each other, before turning to look at me.

"We did, but he was against our plan from the beginning. All he wanted was for Griselda to rest in peace." Yolko said.

"He did forge the weapons for us, but only after we got down on our knees and begged him." Kains chimed in.

I just looked at them.

"I'm sorry, but he had a different reason for not liking your plan. Griselda had nothing to do with it."

They both looked confused.

"Huh?" they asked in unison.

"He thought faking PKs in a Safe Zone was going to draw a lot of attention. He didn't want to take the risk of someone snooping for answers."

They still looked surprised. I turned to look away from them.

"We found out the whole thing about a half hour ago."

They both continued to look at me.

"It was Grimlock?" Kains asked. "Then those were his instructions. And he killed Griselda, too?"

"No, I doubt he was the one who actually killed her." I said. "Although, I'm pretty sure he went and found himself a red player to do it for him."

Schmitt gasped with shock as he continued to look at me.

"My God." Yolko spoke up. "But if he really did have her killed, why would he go through all that trouble to help us out?"

"You explained your plan to him in detail, didn't you?"

Yolko sat up straighter.

"Your plan was the perfect chance for him to bury the Ring Incident and any witnesses once and for all. All he'd have to do is sit back and wait for you, Schmitt and Kains to get together. You'd be sitting ducks."

"That's it." Schmitt spoke. "That's why. They knew we'd be here because he hired them!"

"Yeah. My guess is it was probably the same bunch he hired to kill Griselda."

"Om my God." Yolko spoke with a sad look in her eyes.

She fell over a bit and Kains caught her in his arms.

"Found him!" a voice said from behind me.

I turned around to see Klein, Sachi and Asuna walking towards me, escorting a man in a hat and glasses our way. Before I could speak, Klein beat me to it.

"Well, it looks like the cavalry has arrived." He said as he walked up to me and offered me a fist bump. "What's up, dude?"

"Mmm." I grunted as I returned his fist bump with a blank expression on my face.

He gave me a strange look.

"What's that mark on your face?"

I gave him a strange look in return as I felt my face and after a second or two, felt a small mark on my cheek.

 _Oh, man! The mark where Asuna stabbed me is still there, isn't it?_

I let out a sigh.

"Asuna stabbed me with a fork."

"Why?" Sachi asked with confusion.

I noticed Asuna flashing me a deadly look. I looked back at them.

"Um, I said something stupid."

"And?" Asuna asked.

I sighed.

"And I won't say it ever again."

"Anything else?" she asked.

"And I'm very sorry."

She smiled with satisfaction. Klein continued to look at me.

"What exactly did you say?" he asked.

I looked over at Asuna, to see that she was frowning. I looked back at Klein.

"It doesn't matter."

I snuck a glance at Asuna, to see that she was smiling again. I directed my attention to the man in the hat and glasses.

"What about that guy?" I asked her. "Who is this?"

"Who do you think he is?" she asked. "This is Grimlock."

"Damn it, Asuna. I told you to track my location! Not to go looking for Grimlock!"

An angry look appeared on her face.

"You're not on my friend list, idiot! I couldn't track you! So, I asked Klein and Sachi to track you while I looked for Grimlock!"

"Okay, okay, you don't have to get so angry about it! But why go after Grimlock?"

"Kirito, if what you said is true, then Grimlock very well may be the culprit!"

"Um, okay…"

I was speaking, when Klein interrupted me.

"Okay, can we get to the point, please?"

I let out a sigh.

"Right. Asuna?"

She nodded before speaking.

"If you guys want to know more, why don't you ask him yourself?"

"Hello." Grimlock replied. "Long time, no see, Comrades."

"I can't believe it…" Yolko said. "Did you… Did you really plan this? How could you, Grimlock?! Answer me! Why did you kill Griselda?! Was it money?! Was the money so important to you that you'd kill your own wife?!"

"Hmm, money? Did you say money?" he asked.

They all looked up at him with shock and all he did was chuckle to himself. His smile disappeared as he straightened up.

"It wasn't for the money. I had to. No matter what, I had to kill her while we were still stuck in this world. I had to kill her while she was still my life. And also, because she was my wife in the real world."

Yolko and Kains gasped with shock. Even Schmitt seemed surprised.

"In a way, she was the perfect wife. Ideal, so pretty, submissive. The whole time we were together, we never had a single fight. But when we were trapped in here, in this world, she changed. In here, I was the one who was afraid, terrified of playing this death game. But she looked so much happier here, more alive than she did in the real world. There was nothing I could do about it. She changed. The Yuko I loved was gone."

I grit my teeth in an effort to keep from speaking. I was beginning to be disgusted by Grimlock and his story. But nevertheless, I continued to listen.

"Gone! But then I realized that I didn't have to live with the way she was, murder was legal in this game! If I couldn't have the Yuko I loved back, I'd settle for the memory of her!"

There was a crazed look in Grimlock's eyes. A look that I didn't like.

"And who could blame me?" he finished speaking.

"That's why you did it?" I asked with shock, not being able to contain my thoughts any longer. "That's the reason you killed your wife?"

He didn't seem phased by what I said. In fact, I didn't think that anyone could get through to him.

"It's reason enough. And someday, you'll understand, too. Once you've found love, believe me, you'll do anything to keep it."

I felt unnerved by what he said. That's when Asuna spoke up as she sheathed her rapier.

"You're wrong Grimlock. You've got it all wrong."

She walked ahead of him and stopped near me.

"You didn't love Griselda. That's not what you felt!" she spoke before violently turning to face him. "You stopped loving her when you became selfish and possessive!"

Grimlock gasped with shock in response and his eyes widened. He looked down and fell to his knees. It sounded like he was going to cry. I was then taken by surprise when Kains and Yolko walked past Asuna and I. Schmitt followed.

"Kirito, we appreciate your help." Kains spoke. "But I think this is our problem to deal with now."

"Okay." I said.

Klein spoke up.

"Are you sure you'll guys be alright?"

"Positive." Kains replied as he and Schmitt forced Grimlock to get up.

Yolko followed them but turned and bowed to us before leaving. Asuna bowed back, so I decided to take her example. We all watched as they walked off.

"So, now what?" Sachi asked.

Before any of us could answer, the sun began to rise. I let out a yawn and stretched.

"Hey." Asuna said next to me. "Say it was one of you guys, and you married someone, and later on you found out about a different side to them that you didn't know about, how would you feel?"

Sachi, Klein and I all looked at each other, trying to come up with answers.

"I guess it depends on what that side is." Klein spoke first.

I didn't answer at first.

"I guess that I was lucky?"

Asuna let out a grunt as surprise. She looked at me.

"Um, because, I mean, if you marry someone that means you like what you already know about them, doesn't it? And if you discover something you didn't know about them before and fell in love with that, too, then, that would be awesome?"

She eventually looked away from me.

"Right. Good answer." She spoke before turning to look at me. "What about you, Sachi?"

Sachi didn't answer.

"Sachi?" Asuna asked as she turned to face her.

She gave Asuna a small smile.

"I don't really have an answer." She said.

"Fine." Asuna said as she turned back. "Anyway, I'm hungry after all this. I didn't really get to finish my dinner.

I nodded.

"Oh, yeah, I guess you didn't."

She turned to Klein and Sachi.

"I'm going to go get something to eat. Do you guys want to come along? Kirito?"

I debated on whether or not I wanted to go out with Asuna again, and risk being poked with a fork again. I eventually sighed. Asuna began to walk forward, with Sachi and Klein following her and that's when I noticed something. I quickly stepped forward and grabbed Asuna's forearm.

"Hey, wait!" I said.

She turned back, flashing me a glare.

"Now what?" she asked.

I pointed to what I saw and all three of them turned. Standing by the tree at Griselda's grave, was a female player in a dark cloak. She had short dark hair, with a clip in it, as well as light skin and green eyes. We all looked at the figure in shock. She smiled at us, but I was still a bit unnerved. One second, she was there, the next, she wasn't. Klein finally broke the silence.

"Um, did we just see a ghost?"

I turned to face him.

"I think so."

I was convinced that we had just seen the ghost of Griselda.

"Hey, Kirito," Asuna spoke. "Do you want to friend me?"

I looked at her and she looked back.

"It's kind of silly not to at this point." She said. "We've both been running in the same party for a while now and I think that we can consider each other friends."

I just stared at her.

"But we hate each other." I said.

She rolled her eyes.

"Come on, Kirito. I really don't think that we hate each other. Sure, we say a lot of things about each other, we yell a lot and I may hit you every once and a while, but…"

"At least once every day." I interjected.

She frowned as she glared at me.

" _Every once and a while_ , but at the end of the day, I do really like you as friend material. You're not that bad to be around."

I continued to stare at her.

"I just don't understand why…"

She interrupted me by punching me in the arm. But she punched me in a playful way. And it surprised me when I saw the smile on her face. She seemed genuinely happy right now, opposed to the usual "Angry Asuna" that I had come to know.

"Just friend me, okay?" she said, continuing to smile at me. "I'm not implying that we have to start hanging out, but I'd like to know where you are and how to get to you if I ever need your help, or if I ever want to talk to you!"

I continued to stare at her, before I finally sighed. The friend request menu popped up in front of my face. My finger hovered over the accept button, before I finally pressed "accept". I looked up at Asuna, who still had a smile on her face. Then, she did something that surprised me. She stepped forward, grabbed hold of my cheek and pinched down.

"See? That wasn't so hard now, was it?" she asked in a teasing tone.

I didn't like how she was pinching me.

"Okay, okay! Cut it out!" I muttered as I pushed her hand away.

She just stared back at me with the same smile on her face. I eventually cleared my throat and interrupted her stare.

"Alright, can we get back to the front lines soon, please? I want to get back to work."

They all had expressions of confusion on their faces.

"What?" I asked.

Asuna spoke first.

"Why do you want to get back to work so bad?"

"Yeah, Kirito. What's up with that?" Klein asked next.

"Well, I uh…" I began to speak as I scratched the back of my neck.

"Kirito?" Sachi asked.

"I just… I just want to get back to the real world." I said at last.

"We all want to go back." Klein said.

"Yeah, so what makes your case so special?" Asuna asked.

"I, uh, I have a family I want to get back to. A little sister that I'd like to see again."

"A little sister? I don't think you ever told me you had a little sister." Sachi spoke.

"Well, she's not exactly my little sister. She's actually my cousin."

"Your cousin? What are you saying, Kirito?" Asuna asked.

"We were raised together by my aunt and uncle. She's actually my cousin."

"Kirito?" Sachi asked with concern.

I looked down, but I didn't cry.

"My aunt and uncle adopted me a year after I was born. My parents died in an accident. And I never knew them."

No one said a word. I looked back up at them, to see that all of them had looks of sympathy on their faces, even Asuna. Before I knew it, they were all hugging me. I was surprised because I hadn't expected this. Eventually, I did my best to hug them back. After a minute or so, something happened that surprised me. I heard a gasp and was suddenly pushed back onto the ground. When I looked up, Asuna was staring down at me.

"What the hell are you doing?!" she asked, her face red with embarrassment.

I wasn't aware of what had happened. They were all hugging me when all of a sudden, they pushed me back. That's when I noticed Sachi and Klein standing behind Asuna. Wait, Sachi and Klein hadn't pushed me. _Asuna_ pushed me. I understood now. Sachi and Klein had pulled out of the hug, leaving me and Asuna in an embrace. An embrace she had apparently disliked.

I stared up at Asuna as she stared back down at me, her face still red. That's when I began to get a bit scared. All of a sudden, her face slowly returned to its normal color and she smiled. She just smiled. And that worried me. Eventually she stuck out her hand to me.

"What?" I asked, dumbfounded.

She frowned just a little bit.

"Come on, Kirito! I'm offering you help to get back up!"

I relunctantly took her hand and she pulled me up. Once I was up, she turned back around.

"Come on everyone. Breakfast is on me." She spoke as she walked.

"Oh, hell's yeah!" Klein exclaimed as he ran to catch up with her.

I moved and slowly began to catch up with them, when Sachi fell back to walk with me. She got close to me and suddenly put her lips to my ear.

"Sachi, what the…"

I didn't get a chance to answer as she began to whisper into my ear.

"You are _totally_ smitten with her!"

I looked at her and blushed as she wiggled her eyebrows up and down. Before I could say anything else, Sachi took off running back to the other two who were several feet ahead of us.

"Sachi, wait up!" I called as I ran after her.

She only laughed as I tried to catch up with her. And so, I ran back to the group, with the sun rising behind us, the dawn of a new day.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's going to do it, everybody! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! This is most likely the last chapter of 2018 for this story. But don't worry, I'll be back at some point in 2019! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 5): You changed the number of players wrong. You said "one thousand (1,000) players locked in at the start and more than two hundred and fifty (250) have died now." It was ten thousand (10,000) players locked in the start. I don't know how many had died by this point in the series, but it was definitely more than two thousand players (2,000) that had already died (reference to episodes 1 and 2 of Season 1). That is a major mistake in this chapter, since you had the canon number back in Chapter 1._

Thanks, Naruto. Thanks for pointing out the mistake I made. I'll have to go back and change it when I have the time. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito arrives at Lisbeth's blacksmith shop, requesting that she make him the best sword possible. When he breaks one of her best swords, he offers to tag along on a quest to get the materials necessary to replace it.


	7. Chapter 7: The Temperature of the Heart

Chapter 7: The Temperature of the Heart

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Seven and happy 2019, everybody! There will be a minor difference or two in this chapter, just so you know. With nothing else to be said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _June 24_ _th_ _, 2024 – Forty Eighth Floor: Lindas_

I walked into the small blacksmith shop on the Forty Eighth Floor of Aincrad. I had passed word around my party that I was looking for a new sword, that my old one just wasn't cutting it anymore. And believe it or not, Asuna was nice enough to message me about a girl who owned her own blacksmith shop.

And according to her, the owner really knew what she was doing. So, in that case, who was I not check out the shop? I looked around the shop, but there was no one in sight. So, I decided to walk around the shop for a bit. I was so absorbed checking out the swords in the display cases, that I didn't even hear the door open.

"Welcome to Lisbeth's Blacksmith Shop!" a female voice said.

I looked up from the display case, to see a girl with short pink hair and light pink eyes standing on the other side of the shop. She was wearing red, gold and white outfit, with a skirt and boots.

"Oh, hi." I said in a nervous tone. "I was wondering if you do custom orders?"

She walked over to the counter as she gave me a strange look. A look that kind of unnerved me. Eventually, she finally spoke.

"Um, the thing is, metal prices are kinda high these days."

"Well, I'm not worried about the cost." I replied. "I just want the best sword you can make, as soon as possible."

She gave me another strange look.

"Well, I make a lot of different swords, but do you have any idea of the quality of it, then I can make it, but…"

I interjected.

"Sure, one sec."

I unsheathed my sword and held it out above the counter.

"So, I'm looking for something either the same quality or better than this."

The girl took the sword from me and nearly dropped it on the counter. She gasped with surprise as she looked down at it.

"An Elucidator…" she finally spoke. "This is the gnarliest magic sword a person can get from a monster drop!"

She put her hand on her chin as I spoke again.

"So, what do you think?"

She turned around without a word and began to browse through the wall of weapons behind her. She eventually turned back around with a sword in her hand, a sword with a small, long blade, sort of like Asuna's rapier.

"How about this one?" she asked as I took it from her. "It's the best sword I've ever forged. I call it my masterpiece!"

I stepped back and began to make a couple practice strikes with it through the air.

"I don't know." I said at last. "It's a little light."

"It should be. I used a speed-type metal to forge it."

I held it up in front of me.

"I'd like to test it if it's cool." I said.

"Test it how?"

"You know, its durability."

The look on her face dropped when I grabbed my sword and unsheathed it.

"What the heck are you doing?! If you break your sword, I'm not responsible!"

"If it breaks, then that's too bad!" I said as I charged my skill and swung my sword.

I swung my sword and yes, it did break. Well, not my sword, anyway. Her sword broke in half once I struck it with mine. One half of it flew across the room and came to a stop in the corner of the shop, before shattering, all as the girl watched. She screamed before turning back to look at me. I didn't know what to say. But naturally, when I did speak, I said something that didn't help at all.

"Um, sorry?" I asked in a nervous tone.

She yanked what was left of her sword out of my hands.

"You're "sorry"? Do you have any idea what you've done! You broke my masterpiece!"

The other end of the sword then shattered in her hands as well. She stared at the open air in disbelief. For some reason, I found myself panicking. And for another reason, I began to apologize more.

"If it means anything to you, I'll do anything to help you recreate that sword!" I blurted out.

She dropped to her hands and knees, and I think I heard her start crying. All of a sudden, she did something that surprised me. She jumped to her feet and grabbed me by the throat.

"What the hell were you thinking?!"

"Hey, I said I was sorry! I didn't think that yours would break so easily, honest!"

She gave me a look of surprise, before going back to looking angry a few seconds later.

"Are you saying my sword, my masterpiece of a sword, was lamer than you thought?!"

"Um, I guess?"

Her grip around my throat tightened. But she dropped me and just smacked me across the face.

"For your information, if I had the right materials, I could make a butt load of swords that would shatter yours into a million tiny pieces. You got that?"

I had to hand it to her. For a girl, she was pretty feisty. She kinda reminded me of Asuna. I smiled.

"That sounds like the kind of sword I'm looking for!" I said. "As long as it can shatter mine, though."

She didn't like that. Her face began to turn red with anger.

"Okay, smarty pants! But you have to help me make it every step of the way!"

"Hey, take it easy little girl! I already told you I'd help you replace the sword!"

That didn't help her mood.

"I'm not a little girl! And since you're so eager to help, we'll start with getting the metal for it."

"I think I can handle that myself. I'd rather not have you slowing me down."

"Don't you dare insult me! Believe it or not, I'm an expert mace user!"

"Suit yourself." I spoke as I walked past her. "So, where do we find the metal?"

"Floor Fifty Five, on the Western Mountain."

I nodded as I sheathed my sword.

"There's a dragon there that eats crystals. According to legends, it's supposed to store the rare metal in its body."

"Floor Fifty Five, huh? Yeah, I should go al…"

She interrupted me before I could continue.

"And they say to get the metal, you need to bring a master smith along."

I turned to look at her, to see that she had a smirk on her face. I knew exactly what was going through her head.

"Still think going alone is a good idea?" she asked with the smirk still on her face.

I looked at her for a few seconds before I looked away.

"I… Uh…" I looked back at her as I struggled to form a coherent sentence.

That fact only made her smirk bigger. I sighed.

"Fine. Just keep quiet and stay out of the way." I said at last.

That didn't help her mood.

"Quiet and…"

She was speaking when the thought came to my mind that I hadn't introduced myself yet. So, I interrupted her again.

"By the way, my name's Kirito. Looks like we're a party until we make that sword."

She turned away with anger as I finished my sentence.

"Yeah, whatever, _Kirito!_ " she spoke in a rude manner as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Well, if you're gonna be like that, I can roll with it, " _Lizzz-beth"_!" I spoke in a tone I knew that would tick her off.

She looked back at me with disapproval, as a pouty expression formed on her face.

 _Later – Fifty Fifth Floor: Western Mountain_

As we trudged through the snow, I could hear Lisbeth shivering behind me. That's when I heard her sneeze. You know, for being what I called "semi-polite" while in her shop, I was honestly coming off as a jerk. So, I decided to try to actually be nice for once.

"It's cold." I heard her whisper to herself.

"Here." I said as I turned around and unequipped my coat. "You can use this until we get back."

She stared at me with surprise as I offered my coat to her. Eventually she got over the surprise and took it from me.

"Are you okay with this?" she asked as she put it on.

"You don't feel cold if you're disciplined." I simply said.

"If you're trying to piss me off, it's working!" she called from behind as I walked forward.

She went silent for a few seconds.

"It's warm, though."

I stopped once I noticed that she had stopped following. I turned around to face her.

"What's wrong, Lisbeth? Giving up already?"

She flashed me an angry look.

"Not on your life!" she said as she ran to catch up with me. "And if you're gonna be such a jerk about it, you might as well call me Liz."

"Okay, okay, got it. _Liz_."

"You know what, don't wear it out!" she exclaimed, her voice echoing off the mountains.

Some time passed as we made our way up the mountain. Lisbeth began gasping with joy once we arrived in an area full of metal ore.

"It's beautiful!" she exclaimed.

She began running, but I grabbed hold of the back of the coat that I had lent her, stopping her in her tracks. She whirled around and gave me an angry look.

"What's your problem?!"

"You should get your teleport crystal ready." I advised.

"I know, I know, I'm doing it." She said in an angered tone as she opened her inventory.

"And I'm handling this part on my own." I added. "Once the dragon appears, you're going to hide under one of those crystals over there. Don't come out, no matter what."

"Oh, come on! I'm not a noob! If I want to help you, I'll…"

"Do what I say!" I shouted, interrupting her.

She gasped as she shut her mouth. I stared at her with a serious look on my face. At last she nodded.

"Mmm-hmm." She muttered in a low tone.

"Good." I said, patting her head as I walked past. "Okay, let's get going."

I walked forward a few feet before the dragon revealed itself. I looked over my shoulder to see Liz just standing there.

"Hurry up and take cover!" I commanded.

She nodded and took off.

"Okay!" she said as she went.

With her out of the way, I directed my attention to the dragon. It was huge. At least a hundred feet tall, light gray-skinned and with the metal crystals embedded all along its back. It got ready to attack and that's when I heard Liz from behind me.

"Watch out, it's a breath attack!"

I charged my sword skill and blocked the attack. Once I saw an opening, I ran forward and got a few strikes in with my sword. The dragon backed up and flew towards me, as I launched myself into the air with a yell. I soared past him, as I cut off his arm.

"Come on! Quit playing with it and finish it off already!" I heard Liz shout from behind me.

I turned my head to see that she had come out of cover. Unfortunately, so did the dragon.

"Damn it! Don't come out yet!" I shouted.

I heard her mutter something, but over the sound of the dragon, I couldn't tell what she had said. The dragon began flapping its wings, kicking up wave after wave of snow. Liz tried to run but got caught in the wave.

"Liz!" I shouted her name as I tried to run to check on her.

She let out a scream as she was blown over to what looked like a bottomless pit. Seeing no other option, I dove into the pit as Liz fell towards the bottom, which I couldn't see yet. I eventually reached her and grabbed her hand as we continued to fall.

"Hang on to me, Liz!" I exclaimed over the rush of the wind.

She hugged herself against me as we continued to fall, screaming as we did.

 _Sometime Later_

I don't know how much time passed, but eventually we reached the bottom of the pit. And again, I don't how much time passed before I felt Liz begin to wake up.

"So, you're alive." I said at last in a monotone voice.

She quickly got off of me and sat on her knees next to me.

"Yeah, feels like it." She said as I began to sit up.

I let out a sigh as I opened up my inventory. I handed Liz a small bottle of red liquid.

"Drink one of these, just in case."

She only grunted in response, but she did what I said. As I drank the potion, my HP began to regenerate. I was deep in thought when Liz interrupted.

"Thank you. You know, for… saving me."

I did appreciate her thanks, but I had to be truthful with her. And so, I was going to. I looked away from her as I spoke.

"It's a little early to be thanking anyone. We have to find a way to get out of here, first." I said as I looked up.

"Huh? Can't we just teleport out?"

As she asked that, she took out her Teleport Crystal before I could answer.

"Teleport: Lindas!"

When it didn't work, she looked down at her Crystal with surprise.

"No way…"

I stood up.

"Well, if we can't use Crystals, that means there should be another way out."

The only problem was, I didn't sound that convincing, even to myself.

"How can you be sure that there is? I mean, maybe this is some kind of trap rigged to kill anyone who falls into it!"

"I see your point. Maybe it is."

That didn't seem to help her mood. She got up from the ground to face me.

"Would it kill you to at least try to cheer me up?!"

I put my hand to my chin and began to think as I looked at her.

"I think I have an idea." I said at last.

"Really?" she asked in a relieved tone.

I was confused. One second, she was acting angry with me, the next she was relieved by what I said. Nevertheless, I craned my head to look up the pit walls.

"Yeah, we could try running up the wall." I said.

She just gave me an unconvinced look. See what I mean?

"You're insane." She said at last.

I chuckled.

"And you're just now figuring that out?" I said, before my smile disappeared. "So, what if I'm insane? This is the only idea I have right now."

I backed up and then ran forward towards the wall, leaving Liz in a bit of a daze. I leapt up towards the wall and my feet connected with the rocky terrain. I began running.

 _It's working!_

Famous last words. I ran for about three more seconds before my foot hit a slippery surface that threw me off balance. I let out gasp as I disconnected from the wall and screamed all the way back down to the bottom of the pit. I landed right at Liz's feet. I reached my hand up out of the body-shaped crater I had made and pulled myself up.

"If had more of a running start," I grunted as I pulled myself out of the crater. "I probably would have made it."

Liz bent down so she could look at me at eye level, with a smirk on her face.

"Yeah, I don't think so."

 _Later That Night – Fifty Fifth Floor: Western Mountain_

Night had fallen, and Liz and I were both lying in our own sleeping bags, with a small fire going behind us.

"This is weird, isn't it?" she asked, breaking the silence between us. "This wouldn't happen in real life. You know, going to strange places, meeting a total stranger, and then sleeping next to them! I mean, you actually tried running up that wall!"

She let out a bit of a laugh before she continued.

"You are such a weirdo, you know that?"

 _To be fair, a lot of stuff in Sword Art Online wouldn't happen in real life._

"Yeah, you could say a lot of things about me." I said at last with a bit of an ominous tone.

Silence fell before us for a few seconds.

"What do you mean?" she asked at last.

A silent debate went on inside my head for a few seconds. Was I really going to tell this girl, this girl that I had known for barely a day, about the things that I had done? The things I had seen? No, I wasn't.

I let out a sigh as I rolled over onto my side, facing away from her.

"Don't worry about it." I said. "We should get some sleep. It's going to be a big day tomorrow."

There was silence from her for a few seconds.

"Kirito?" she said my name, breaking the silence once more. "Can I ask you something?"

I didn't respond, but I grunted, doing my best to signal for her to go on.

"Why did you risk your life like that just to save me?"

 _I can't sit back and just watch someone die. Not after how I failed to save The Moonlit Black Cats,_ I thought. _Rather than do nothing, I'd rather die alongside them._

At last I spoke.

"If I told you… you wouldn't understand."

She was silent once again for a few seconds.

"You won't even let me try to hear you out?" she asked in a painfully sad tone.

I said nothing in response. Eventually she spoke again.

"Wow, you really are an idiot, you know that?"

 _I know. It must be horrifically dumb to refuse help when it's clearly right in front of you, isn't it?_

I sighed, and my thoughts drifted back to the Moonlit Black Cats. I felt a pang of sadness and anger in my heart. I could feel the guilt of all their deaths weighing down upon me. And even though it had been some time since their passing, I still felt tempted to cry myself to sleep every night. Such was one of those nights, as I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

"Hey." She broke the silence once more. "Hold my hand?"

The core shock of what she had said shook the tears from my eyes. I rolled back over to face her, as I grunted a surprised response.

"Huh?"

She was looking at me with a pleading gaze.

"It's cold." She said in a small voice.

I couldn't say no to that.

"Okay." I said with a small nod.

I reached my hand out and laid my palm over hers. She folded her fingers over the back of my hand and ever so lightly tightened her grasp on my hand. The first thing that I noticed is that her hand wasn't cold. It was warm; my hand was the cold one. So, why had she asked to hold my hand?

"It's so warm." She said.

"Huh?"

"Even though you and I are just these ones and zeros in a virtual world..."

"I know." I lied.

She laid there motionless for a few seconds, before she looked at me and smiled, before closing her eyes. That prompted me to do the same.

 _June 25_ _th_ _, 2024 – Fifty Fifth Floor: Western Mountain_

I heard Liz yawn and get up from behind me as I dug in the snow.

"What the…?" she eventually said out loud.

I disregarded what she had said and continued digging.

"Whatcha doing?"

"Hmm?" I asked as I looked over my shoulder, to see Liz standing there.

I held up a piece of metal ore that I had found.

"Here, look."

She let out a small gasp of surprise and her jaw dropped a bit, as she tapped on the item in my hands.

"Is this… what I think it is?"

"Uh-huh. It's that special metal we came all this way for. Like you said, the dragon eats the crystals and they turn into this in its stomach."

I laughed as I stood up with it still in my hand.

"No wonder it's so hard to find!" I replied as I tossed it to her.

"Yeah, but you found it. What's it doing down here, though?"

"This hole isn't a trap like we thought. It's the dragon's nest."

"R-Really?"

"Uh-huh. And that's not just an ingot, it's dragon excrement. You know, poop?"

She looked down at it and then back up at me. She eventually got the message as she let out a scream and tossed it into the air. I caught it.

"Well, I guess this means we got what we came here for." I replied. "Still stuck though."

She stared down at her fingers, quivering before she looked back at me.

"Wait, this is a dragon's nest, right?"

"Yep."

"Cause, dragons are nocturnal, so it won't be long before it comes…"

I let out a light gasp in response to what she was saying. We both suddenly looked up. As if on cue, the giant dragon began to soar down towards us.

"It's here!" Liz exclaimed.

It let out a roar as it closed in on us. I made the quick move of crouching and grabbed Liz by her thighs, lifting her up onto my shoulder.

"What are you doing?!"

I drew my sword and got into a running start, before I leapt up to the wall. I ran faster that I ever had before, with Liz hanging over my shoulder, screaming the whole way. Once I got to a good enough height, I kicked off of the wall and flipped over.

"Hang on to me, Liz!" I exclaimed as we fell towards the dragon.

Once we reached the dragon, I stabbed my sword into its spine, which pissed it off. It let out a roar as it soared upwards towards the sky.

"Almost there!" I said after several seconds passed.

The dragon soared up out of the pit and into the morning sun. My sword became dislodged from the dragon's back and we soared upwards into the clouds, both of us screaming all the way up. However, the screaming stopped once we got above the clouds. The view was beautiful, which saying that alone was an understatement.

"Wow! Look at that!" she exclaimed as we fell.

I looked at her and offered my hand to her with a smile on my face as we fell. She eventually took my hand and held on.

"Kirito! You know what?" she yelled over the sound of the wind.

"No, what?" I yelled back.

She yelled something with a smile on her face as she closed her eyes, but I couldn't hear what she said.

"I can't hear a thing!" I yelled. "What did you just say?"

She just laughed and pulled me into a hug as we continued to fall. I was surprised by it, but nonetheless let it happen, as she continued laughing as we fell.

 _Later That Day – Forty Eighth Floor: Lindas_

Liz and I were back in her Blacksmith Shop, and she was ready to forge my sword.

"A one-handed long sword. Right?" she asked.

"Yep. Make it awesome!"

There was silence between us once again as she went to work. As she worked, I felt a pang of regret in my stomach. I feel like my apology to her hadn't been fully accepted.

"Hey, while I have the change, I just want to tell you that I'm sorry for breaking your sword." I said. "I should have been more careful."

She said nothing at first.

"It's okay." She said at last. "No hard feelings. Besides, it was kind of fun traveling with you!"

"Seriously?"

Eventually, after another minute of her working, my sword was finished.

"Whoa." I said was all I could muster as I stared at finished sword that was temporarily glowing with red light.

The sword eventually stopped glowing, revealing a one-handed, long silver sword. Liz heaved a sigh as she set the hammer down.

"There. All done! The sword is called "Dark Repulser". It's one of a kind."

Oh yeah, that was a thing. Apparently, you couldn't custom name an item once it was created, they named themselves.

"And it isn't even in the info brokers' directory."

She looked up at me.

"Go on, try it."

"Okay."

I picked it up with both hands, activated my sword skill and gave it a few swings. I liked the feel of it in my hand. It felt heavy. I guess me just standing there and not answering caused Liz to worry.

"Good? Bad?" she asked in a small voice.

"It's real heavy." I said at last. "It's a good sword!"

"Yay!" she exclaimed in a giddy tone as I turned to face her, holding the tip of the sword with my free hand.

"It feels like you forged your soul into it."

She just smiled as she held her hand close to her heart, before making a small fist. I placed Dark Repulsor into the scabbard and held it at my hip. I turned back to face her.

"Alright, you held up your end of the bargain. But I'm still going to pay for that sword I broke when we met yesterday. So, how much?"

She put her hands together and held them below her waist as she looked down at the floor.

"Um, well. I don't really need any money," she said before looking back up at me. "So, no deal!"

I was confused now.

"Huh?"

"I don't need you to pay me."

I was still confused.

"B-B-But I broke your masterpiece!"

Great, now I was stuttering. Liz's hands seemed to tighten as she blushed, as she continued to look at me.

"Just spending time with you was enough. Kirito, in the day that we spent together, I've realized that you're not as much of a jerk as I thought. You're actually a really nice guy to be around. And instead, I'd like to be your exclusive blacksmith from now on."

Okay, full disclosure, it seemed to me that Liz was being really flirty right now. And I'm not sure if I liked that or disliked that. I pulled on the collar of my shirt, feeling as though I were having trouble breathing.

"What do you mean "exclusive"?" I asked after I recovered.

She didn't answer, she just stared at the floor and looked away.

"What's wrong?"

She blushed, seeming to have a hard time speaking.

"I mean, any time you get back from the field, stop by and let me do maintenance on your gear!" she said as she looked back up at me. "Every day, from now to the end!"

I just stared down at her, a blush of my very own beginning to form. I gasped with surprise, struggling to form words.

"Liz, I…" I tried to speak, but I didn't get any farther than that.

"Kirito, I just…"

She stopped speaking as she reached out for my hand.

"I…"

 _Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold the phone!_

Was Liz about to confess that she has feelings for me? I wasn't sure if I was ready for something like that! Okay, back it up here. I know a lot of girls in SAO. Well, not a lot, but a few to be certain. First, there was Asuna, who's hair was beautiful and eyes pretty to look at. I'm a little embarrassed to talk about her in that regard, as we aren't exactly on the friendliest of terms.

Next, there's Sachi. Sure, she's really cute, but has revealed to be just a tad perverted since we joined Klein and Asuna's party. Not that that's a problem. The cute side of her outweighs the perverted side of her that is rarely seen. Next is Silica. She's really cute, but I think she may be a little… young for me, for lack of better term. I don't think that would work out.

And that brings around to Liz. She's cute just like the last three. But I've only known her for a little less than a day. Back to the point: I'm not sure if I was ready for what I thought was coming. I had never even kissed a girl in real life! Did I really want to have my first kiss and possibly my first relationship happen in a virtual world?

Well, I'd never find out that answer to that. It must have been a miracle from God himself: the sound of the door opening followed by frantic footsteps into the back room.

"Liz!" I heard Asuna's voice from above. "I was so worried!"

Liz looked up as I heard Asuna approach from behind.

"A-Asuna?"

She ran and hugged Liz, surprising her.

"Liz! Where were you last night?! I tried messaging you, but you didn't answer, and I couldn't track you on the map…"

Asuna hugged Liz even tighter.

"Sorry." She finally answered. "I kinda got stuck in a dungeon."

Asuna pulled away from the hug with surprise.

"A dungeon? You went all by yourself?"

 _Wait, had she seriously not noticed me?_

"Uh-uh," Liz spoke, shaking her head and pointing at me. "I went with him."

Asuna turned to look at me.

"Kirito?" she asked with some degree of surprise in her voice.

"H-Hey, Asuna!" I said, still stuttering.

 _Oh, boy. If I'm stuttering even around Asuna, am I in trouble!_

Meanwhile, out of my peripheral vision, I saw Liz making a bit of a weird face.

"It's been like what, a week or so?" I asked, looking back at Asuna.

She just smiled.

"Well, this is a surprise! I didn't know you wanted to check this place out right away! I wish you would have told me, I would have come with you!"

"I'm sort of confused." Liz spoke up. "Do you two know each other?"

I couldn't help but smile at the thought of the party that Sachi and I were a part of with them.

"Yeah, we're both in the same party. She and my other buddy convinced me and my travel companion to party with them a while back."

"We didn't convince you to join us!" she said as she looked at me once more. "You came crawling back to us because you said that you couldn't protect Sachi all by yourself!"

"I did not come crawling back!"

"Did to!"

"Did not!"

"Did to!"

Asuna refused to allow me to continue speaking as she turned to look at Liz.

"He said that he was looking for a more powerful sword, so I told him about you and your shop."

"Oh."

Asuna gave me a look of confusion.

"Why is she acting like that?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "I swear, if you did anything weird to her…"

"I…I didn't do anything!"

"Then why did you stutter just now, huh?"

 _God, wasn't she persistent?_

"You know, you could show a little more compassion! I almost got killed!"

"That's not my fault! Why didn't you ask me, Sachi, Klein or any one of us to come along?"

She turned back to look at Liz.

"If this guy said anything rude, you'd tell me, right?"

Liz looked down at the ground and when she didn't answer, Asuna looked at her.

"Liz?"

She didn't answer still. I let out a light gasp of confusion as Liz stood there motionless, with a sad look on her face now. Then she surprised us both.

"You want to talk about rude? Try this!" she said, looking back at us with a smile on her face. "First thing he does when he comes in is shatter my best sword!"

"What?!" she exclaimed.

"I said I was sorry! Twice!"

She then stepped closer to Asuna, whispering something into Asuna's ear, which I didn't hear. As she walked away, Asuna turned around with a blush on her cheeks.

"But I told you it's not like that!" she exclaimed.

I turned as I watched Liz walk up towards the door to the main shop. I was confused; it seemed as though she were in a hurry.

"Liz?" Asuna said her name with confusion.

"Sorry, I have to go pick up some supplies!" she said in a hurried tone. "I'll be right back!"

"But you're just leaving the shop?"

"Hold down the fort for me!" she said with a wink. "Later!"

I watched her go, not sure why she winked at us, but I did know that it sent a small chill down my spine.

"What? No, wait! Liz!" Asuna called her name, but to no avail.

We stood there by ourselves for several minutes, until I finally spoke up.

"Liz has been gone for a while. I'm thinking about going looking for her. Are you okay here by yourself?"

She looked up at me and eventually nodded.

"Yeah, sure. You go on ahead."

I nodded back, turned and ran up the stairs to the door. I opened the door and ran through the shop and then outside.

 _Later_

It took a while, but I eventually found her. And from what it looked like, she hadn't been out for supplies. She was sitting with her back against a stone barrier on the other side of a bridge.

"Lisbeth." I said her name as I approached.

She only shifted a little bit from where she sat. Then she completely stood up.

"I almost got away with it." She said without turning to face me, a bit of an ominous tone to her voice.

I had no idea what she was talking about, but it both unnerved and worried me. She finally turned to face me with a small smile on her face, but there was a sad look in her eyes.

"A couple more minutes and I would have gone back to my usual cheerful self…"

She wiped tears from her eyes as she spoke. That worried me, too.

"Liz, I…" I tried to speak, only to be interrupted.

"How'd you know I was here?"

I smiled and pointed to a tower in the distance, as Liz followed my finger.

"I scanned the whole town for you from up there."

She turned back to look at me with a smile on her face.

"Figures you'd do something crazy like that!" she said before turning away again.

She walked further away from me and came to a stop at the edge of the stream of water.

"Sorry if I worried you. I'm fine now. Must be all the excitement, I'm not used to having adventures."

She bent down on her knees and stared at her reflection in the water.

"Anyway, just forget everything I said." She replied as she covered up her eyes. "Everything."

I walked over to her and stopped just behind her.

"Liz, I just wanted to thank you."

She took her hands off her eyes and looked up with surprise.

"I don't meet a lot of new people." I said as I looked away. "Besides Asuna, and a couple of other friends, you're the only person I know in here. When we got out of that pit, it made me happy knowing that we were both still alive. So, maybe I should try to you know, branch out? So, thank you, Liz."

She was silent.

"I guess that all this time, I was looking for something in here. People like Asuna and my friends Klein and Sachi realized that dying alone wasn't worth it. After that, I guess I started looking for meaningful relationships, I guess? I wanted to increase the bonds that I held with the three of them. The problem was, that I never got anywhere. I never tried. I think in my time with you, you helped me see that I need to try harder. So, thank you, Liz."

"I get it. I was looking for something, too. When I held your hand and felt the warmth of it, that was real to me."

 _Seriously, was she hinting that she liked me? Why can't she just say it out loud? Girls are confusing._

I didn't know what to say. Eventually, I just smiled back at her.

"Do me a favor, okay?" she asked. "When the time comes, when it finally happens, tell Asuna everything you just told me."

 _Wait, what does that mean?_

"Liz?" I asked as she walked past me.

"I'm fine, really!"

I turned to watch her continue to walk away.

"No!" I said as I ran to catch up with her. "What do you mean by that?"

"I can't hear you!" she said in a sing songy tone, continuing to walk away from me.

That confirmed what I was thinking what she had said about Asuna.

 _Why, why does everyone think that I'm infatuated with Asuna?!_

 _Author's Note:_

* So, there is my adaptation of Episode Seven: The Temperature of the Heart! I know that Kirito wasn't exactly apologetic in the Anime when he broke Lisbeth's sword, but I thought that during his time with Klein, Sachi and Asuna, he would have picked up a polite trait.

* This was a chapter that I kinda struggled with, so if you feel like I missed something that I should have done, please let me know. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 6): This chapter was really funny in how it expanded upon and further emphasized Kirito's denseness and obliviousness (both in what he says and how he acts). The anime didn't expand much in detail of the situations that portrays how dense Kirito can be sometimes._

 _That includes you having Kirito not noticing Schmitt (during the scene where Kirito rescues Yolko, Kains, and Schmitt from almost being killed by PoH, Johnny Black, and XaXa) until he actually speaks. That was funny. And Kirito forgetting that he did NOT have Asuna on his friend list (because Asuna said that she still didn't have him on her friend list)… Yep. Rest in peace Kirito._

 _Causing a girl to get angry and/or mad is scary and dangerous. Sadly, he still continues to make the same mistakes, like in the next chapter (which would be Season 1 Episode 7 of the anime). Can't wait to see what else is different!_

Thanks, Naruto. I'm glad you thought that the last chapter was funny. Honestly, those moments between Kirito and Asuna are sort of a tease (I guess, I don't know what other word to use) to the eventual budding romance between them. PoH, Johnny Black and XaXa? Are those their names? I didn't search for their names, seeing as I didn't think it would make sense for Kirito to know them. I hope I didn't disappoint with this chapter! Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: After two years, players are used to living in the game. But with a dwindling frontline, it may be up to Kirito, Klein, Sachi and Asuna to continue the charge.


	8. The Sword Dance of Black and White

Chapter 8: The Sword Dance of Black and White

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Eight! The only major difference for this chapter I think is the fact that Sachi is with Kirito and Asuna. I'm not sure if I can figure out any other differences. But anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _October 17_ _th_ _, 2024 – Seventy Fourth: Dungeon_

I was currently in a dungeon, combating a Lizard Man. My sword struck his shield, failure in a attempted attack. I swung again, this time parrying his blade. He got another chance to try to attack, this time going for my neck. I dodged, and he narrowly missed me. I turned and ran back, thinking of a new strategy to use against him.

I heard my enemy charge his skill from behind and begin to pursue me, catching up in a mere second or two. I turned and swiped my sword before he had the chance to land an attack and caught him in the side. He was dazed, which allowed me to land more strikes on his neck and back.

I charged my sword skill once more and slashed across his front, laying down a fatal hit. The Lizard Man begin to glow, before bursting into thousands of glittering pieces. I looked on as the reward menu popped up, detailing my rewards for another finished battle. I looked at my HP Bar, to see that the Lizard Man had barely made a dent in it. I had barely broken a sweat, as well.

I stood there, breathing in and out before I finally lowered my sword. It's been almost two years, since this game of death began. I'm still partied with Klein, Asuna and Sachi, but lately, I've been going at it alone. I put my sword back in its sheath. Akihiko Kayaba is out there somewhere, watching.

I can't help but wonder: Is this the world that he wanted? I let out a sigh and began to move forward, towards the dungeon's exit.

 _Guess it's time to head home,_ I thought. _Although, I should check in with the party today. I haven't heard anything from anyone for the last week._

I sighed and continued trudging forward. I had emerged from the dungeon and was walking through the forest. I stopped when I heard a noise. I turned, and my focus skill went to work, trying to pinpoint where the sound had come from. Eventually, my vision came to rest on a white object in the distance. The system identified it as a Ragout Rabbit, one of the rarest animals within Aincrad.

"You gotta be kidding." I muttered as I reached for my belt, which had a few throwing knives attached to it.

Charging in with a sword wouldn't be a good idea. Even if I moved as slowly and as quietly as possible, it would be gone before I could get anywhere near it. I needed to be careful about this. My combat skills were on point, my throwing knife skill being one of them. If I was standing still, my accuracy should be on point as well. I slowly drew one of the throwing knives, which in all respect, they resembled pins more than they did knives.

I raised one of the knives above me and the skill began to activate. I threw it, but missed, hitting the tree above the Rabbit. It let out a sound of alarm, before beginning to bound away. As it jumped into the air, I threw my other knife. It turned its head to see me and let out another sound of alarm, before my knife pierced through it. It was over. I walked up to the Rabbit's lifeless form and tapped it, bringing up the menu.

 _Please be here, please be here,_ I thought as I looked the menu over.

There it was: Ragout Rabbit Meat. It was a precious commodity, a very rare meal to create. I don't even think anyone I knew had ever had it. Surely, no one in our party ever had it! I was stricken with excitement, which faded once the realization hit me. Not only did I lack the necessary materials to cook the meat, but I also lacked the necessary cooking skill level.

Why should I work on that skill when I can just eat out? Of course, there was one person that may be able to cook this. But she'd probably be to busy. Nevertheless, I opened my friend list and tapped on her name. I was about to hit the message button, but I stopped.

 _Why would Lightning Fast Asuna want to hang out with me?_ _Even if it was just to cook something for me? Who am I kidding, she's probably too busy anyway._

I let out a sigh as I closed my friend list. My problem had just been solved. As much as I'd like to taste the Rabbit Meat, I couldn't cook it myself. So, I'd have to settle on just selling it to someone who could. With a sigh, I took out a Teleport Crystal. As much as I didn't want to waste one, walking back with the chance of thieves being in the area was too high of a risk.

 _Later- Fiftieth Floor: Algade_

I stood in Agil's shop, as he looked at my item menu with surprise.

"No way!" he spoke as his finger shook. "This is an S-class rare item! Holy crap, this is the first time I've ever seen one!"

He must have been truthful, as his face was sweating, and his eyes were wide with intensity.

"Hey, Kirito. Don't you already have all the money you need? I'll buy it, but I'm saying: "Wouldn't you rather have it for dinner"?"

I nodded.

"Sure, but who knows if I'll ever get another one? And besides, I can't cook it myself and I don't know anyone who'd want to cook it for me."

"Even she's…"

"Yep, even _she's_ busy."

"But, why don't you just keep it for yourself? You could work on your cooking skill or wait for an opening from her or…"

"What's the point?" I interrupted him. "It could take me months to train my cooking skill that high, and I'm not even sure if I have that time!"

He remained silent, which didn't encourage me. I looked away and let out another sigh. Just then, the last person I expected to hear that day spoke.

"Hey, Kirito." She spoke as she patted my shoulder.

I looked up and turned my head, surprised to see Asuna standing there with a smile on her face. Standing behind her was a guy who didn't look very happy to see me. He wore the typical Knights of the Blood Oath attire, but uniquely sported a long cape with it. I got over my shock of seeing Asuna standing in front of me.

"W-Where-Where did you come from?" I asked, practically stuttering my entire question.

"I was in the neighborhood when I saw your marker on my map." She said, still with a smile on her face. "So, I decided to drop in on you. So, how are you?"

"U-Um, I'm g-great!" I said, stuttering once again. "Thanks for asking! H-How are you?"

 _Jeez, this is Asuna I'm talking to. Why am I a stuttering mess? Asuna and I don't even like each other!_

"I'm good, too."

Suddenly, I remembered why I wanted to message her earlier. I grabbed her hand with both of mine with excitement. Before she could answer, within a flash, the guy behind her appeared at her side and slapped my hands away.

"How dare you?!" he exclaimed.

"What the hell?" I asked with confusion.

It was Asuna's turn to speak.

"Back off, Kuradeel!" she barked in a demanding tone.

He looked at her with surprise.

"But ma'am, he touched you!"

"He's my friend, he can touch me if he wants to!"

I don't know why, but I could have sworn she blushed a light pink as she said that.

"Wait, what's going on here?"

She turned back to look at me.

"This is my bodyguard, _Kuradeel_." She spoke, cringing when she said his name.

"Bodyguard?"

She let out a sigh.

"Our Guild started out small at first. But as we kept getting more and more members, our leader decided that every one of our elite members should have a body guard. And I'm one of those people. So, what's going on?"

"What's uh, what's your cooking skill at?"

"For your information, I totally maxed it out last week!" she said with a grin on her face.

I was in shock.

 _That was perfect!_ _If she has her cooking skill maxed out, she wouldn't have a problem with a rare item like Ragout Rabbit Meat!_

"W-What?" I asked with disbelief.

"Cool, huh?"

I looked down for a second and then back up at her.

"Well, if you're that good, I need a favor."

I swiped down so she could see my menu. She bent over so she could see my screen and began to look over my menu. Her eyes then widened, and she gasped with shock.

"Y-Y-You got a Ragout Rabbit?" she asked with disbelief.

"I'll trade you." I said with a smile. "All you have to do is cook it up for me and I'll let you have a little bite. I feel like I owe you for telling me about Liz's shop."

Once again, I found out why they call her "Lightning Fast Asuna". She ran up to me faster than I thought she could and grabbed me by my collar. She pulled me close to her so that our noses nearly touched.

"Half." She said. "Deal?"

I quickly nodded and accepted the deal, only because she had mastered the art of intimidating people. She pulled away and I sighed with relief as she smiled, pumping her fists into the air.

"All right!"

I just stared at her, but I couldn't help but smile at her, admiring her enthusiasm. I turned to look at Agil, my smile still on my face.

"You heard the lady. Guess that means I'm keeping it."

"Yeah! But you can at least let me taste it, right? I thought we were tight, man!"

"I'll write a review for you." I said as I walked towards the door. "But only front and back, promise!"

"Damn, that is cold!" I heard him mutter behind us.

Much to my displeasure, Asuna's bodyguard, Kuradeel, I think his name was, followed us.

"So, where am I gonna cook it?" she asked as she walked by my side.

I stopped walking. I honestly didn't think I'd get this far.

"Oh, well…"

"I'm guessing "not your place", right? You even own any cookware?"

I let out a grunt.

"Okay, just this once," Asuna spoke and I turned to look at her. "because the main ingredient is special, I won't have a problem with using my place this time."

I turned away and blushed. I had never even been to a girl's house in real life!

"Thank you for escorting me today." Asuna spoke to Kuradeel. "You may go."

I turned to see what he had to say.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but I can't allow you to go home with such a shady character."

 _Shady? Why you…_

I was beginning to like this guy less and less. Asuna let out a sigh. I couldn't tell what she was thinking or how she was feeling.

"He's my friend. He's on my friend list. He may seem shady, but that's just because of the colors he wears. And he's at least ten levels above you, Kuradeel."

He didn't take kindly to that.

"Are you implying that I'm inferior to him?"

I rolled my eyes.

 _We're going to be here all day._

"Oh, I know." He said. "He's one of those beaters, isn't he?"

It was my turn to speak.

"Yeah, what if I am?"

Kuradeel marched back up to Asuna.

"You shouldn't go with him, ma'am! All him and his kind care about are themselves! You can't expect anything good to come from scum like that!"

Asuna narrowed her eyes. Just now, a crowd began to gather around us. Asuna turned her head to the crowd, before looking back at Kuradeel.

"Listen, I'm second-in-command here. I am ordering you to go home."

Then, without another word to him, she walked over to me and by my surprise, took my hand and began to drag me along. I gasped with surprise as I forced myself to begin walking so, she didn't have to drag me.

"Hey, you know you didn't have to mention my colors? Or my level?" I asked.

"Shut up." Was all she said in return.

I looked back, to see Kuradeel flashing me a look of hatred. It unnerved me, and I would never forget the look I saw in his eyes.

 _Sunset – Sixty First Floor: Selmburg_

"Whoa." I said as we walked through Selmburg, which was a beautiful place in itself. "There's hardly anyone around. It's really cool."

"If you like it so much, why don't you move here?" she asked.

I looked down as I trailed behind her.

"I dunno, this floor just seems really out of my price range."

I looked back up.

"We should hurry." She spoke before I could. "It'll be dark soon."

"Oh, okay."

I sped walk to catch up with her. Eventually, we arrived at her home. And I have to say, it was quite nice. I took a breath as I entered the main room.

"Wow. You've got a killer pad!"

I walked further into the room, where she waited.

"Hey, how much did all this cost?" I asked.

Her smile disappeared as she began to think.

"The room and the furniture cost around four million Col."

She walked past me towards another room.

"Anyway, make yourself at home."

"Uh, sure."

I looked around the room as I walked towards a one person loveseat.

"Holy Moley."

I sat down.

"Four million. Man, that's a lot of Col. I'm sure I've earned that much too, but blowing it all on a flat?"

Footsteps coming from the other side of the room interrupted my thoughts. I turned my head to see Asuna enter the room, now wearing a white and blue tunic and boots, that did a great job of showing off her legs and arms. I don't know why, but that made me blush and I turned away.

"Are you going to take off your coat, or what?" she asked as she walked over to where I was sitting.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry."

I swiped my menu open and removed both my sword sheath and my coat. I walked over to the kitchen area as Asuna began to prepare dinner. She swiped her menu open, tapped the Ragout Rabbit Meat and it appeared on the counter, in a tray.

"So, this is a legendary S-class ingredient?" she asked with her hands on her hips. "Okay, how do you want this cooked up?"

So, I was a nerd. I didn't have any idea what the options where. I would even dare wager that I couldn't cook to save myself in real life! I let out a nervous laugh.

"Um, chef's choice?"

"In that case, how about we make it into a stew?"

She pulled out a decently sized pot and set it on the counter.

"Ragout! That's pretty much the definition of a stew." She said as she swiped her menu open once more.

Two or three trays of ingredients appeared on the counter along with the pot and meat. A knife materialized into her hand and she tapped the meat with it. Just with one tap, the meat flashed and appeared in several cut up chunks. She did the same with all the other ingredients, getting the same result.

I just stared on, fascinated by how the system worked.

"In real life, there'd be a lot more steps involved in preparing this." She said as she slid the meat chunks into the pot.

She put the lid on and put it in the oven.

"Cooking in SAO is simple, believe it or not, it's kind of boring."

She set the timer on for twenty five minutes and pulled her oven mitts off.

"That takes care of that! Now for the next step."

She walked over to another counter.

"I was thinking of making a few side dishes."

She swiped her menu open and a few trays of vegetables appeared, as I continued to look on. Before I knew it, the timer on the oven went off. She opened it and pulled out the pot. She sat down on the counter and pulled the top off. I peaked in and nearly gasped when I saw the bubbling stew inside.

 _To think that we were going to be eating that!_

 _Later_

Asuna and I both sighed with content as we finished eating.

"I've been here two years, and this is the first time I've ever eaten S-class food!" she said with her eyes closed. "I'm so glad I've lived this long!"

"Yeah, me too." I replied as I leaned my head back in the chair.

In my hand, I grasped a cup of tea, which was another thing that Asuna made perfectly. Asuna opened her eyes and looked down at the table with a smile on her face.

"It's so weird, sometimes, I don't know, I get this feeling, that like I've lived here my entire life. You ever feel like that?"

I was busy with a mouthful of tea, but once I swallowed, I spoke.

"Yeah, almost all the time. In fact, there's days that I don't even think about the real world at all. And it's not just me. These days, more and more people don't seem to care about clearing the game and getting back to the real world."

"I noticed there aren't that many players fighting on the frontlines. Maybe five hundred, if that? I guess they're used to it. They don't care anymore."

I looked down, unsure of what to say.

"Yeah well, I want to go back!" she spoke once more.

I looked up.

"I mean, there's things that I haven't done yet. I have to!"

I sat back and smiled with agreement.

"I know how you feel." I said. "And when you stop to consider it, there's everyone else, right? All the people who still count on us? Klein and Sachi, too? If we give up, it's not fair to them."

I took another drink from my cup of tea. As I put my cup back down, I looked at her. She looked back up and gave me a look of disgust, before turning her head away from me and holding up her hand.

"Uh-uh, don't go there."

"What?" I asked with confusion.

"I've seen that look on many guy's faces before. And always right before they proposed to me."

I jumped up as I looked at her with shock, my eyes wide and my jaw dropped. I dropped my cup on the table, clattering it against my plate and bowl. She opened one of her eyes, saw the look on my face and began laughing.

"You should see your face!" she said as she looked back at me. "I guess you never had a girlfriend before?"

I just stared at her with my jaw still dropped, before I regained my composure.

"Hey, that's none of your business!" I said.

I didn't seem to phase her, as her smile remained.

"You know what? Whatever. I'm more of a duo player."

Asuna was silent for a second.

"And you're okay with that? You don't want to join a guild?"

"I don't want to make people risk their lives to help protect a girl they don't even know."

"Sachi?"

I nodded. Thankfully, she didn't ask again why she was so important to me.

"If you would just join a Guild, any Guild, even The Knights of the Blood Oath, we'd help you protect her! You don't even have to tell me why…"

"No." I cut her off. "I appreciate the offer, but I have to refuse."

"But we need you! Once we got to Floor Seventy, things are getting more dangerous. The monster algorithms are even more irregular."

"I'm sorry, Asuna and I wish I could help, I really do, but you're just better off without me."

"But, I…" she began to speak, but eventually sighed. "Okay, fine."

She turned away to look at me and we remained in silence for a few minutes. I understood what she meant. It seemed that the monsters were beginning to become unpredictable.

"Hey…" she spoke up again. "Kirito?"

"Yeah?" I asked, looking up at her.

"Why didn't you just message me instead of trying to sell the meat?"

I scoffed.

"What?"

"Are you kidding me?" I asked as I looked down at the table. "Why would Lightning Fast Asuna want to hang out with a loser like me?"

"Hey, what do you mean?"

I sighed.

"Let me rephrase it. You and I may be on each other's friend list, Asuna. But that doesn't make us friends."

"I don't follow."

I looked back up at her.

"We don't do "friend things". While Klein and Sachi are both my friends, I spend a lot of time with them. Sachi and I go on walks and talk all the time, while Klein and I meet up to eat at a café at least twice a week. Sometimes Sachi is with us, but you never are."

She was silent.

"It's like the only time we see each other is when we need a favor or if it's working to clear the game."

She finally spoke up.

"You're right. We don't act like friends."

I nodded.

"We should go out."

I looked up at her and blushed.

"Wha…"

She looked back at me, saw the look on my face and blushed as well.

"I mean, we should go out and hang out as friends!" she corrected herself.

I let out a sigh as the blush on my cheeks disappeared. I nodded.

"Okay." I said.

"Good! Tomorrow then? At sunrise?"

I nodded.

"Wait, what about your Guild? You can't just abandon them!"

"Yes, I can. We don't have any leveling quotas to meet this week."

"Then, what about your bodyguard?"

"What about him? I'll just ditch him. He's annoying anyway. I don't like him."

I was about to take a drink of my tea, when I realized the cup was empty. As if she knew what I was thinking, Asuna picked up the pitcher and flashed a smile at me. I let out an annoyed sigh, before putting the cup back on the small plate and pushing it over to her. She filled it back up and passed it back. I took a sip of my tea before looking back at her.

"Hey, how much of the stew is left?"

She looked at me and then at the pot.

"Um, not a whole lot. Why?"

"Is there enough for three more bowls?"

"If we really try to even it out, maybe. Again, why?"

"Agil, Klein and Sachi really have to try this. Who knows if I'll ever find a Ragout Rabbit again?"

"You have a good point." She said as she swiped open her menu and made three small bowls appear on the table. "Okay, fine. You go play delivery boy while I clean this up and I'll see you in the morning, okay?"

I nodded as I stood up, finishing my last cup of tea. I put the cup down and equipped the Coat of Midnight again, along with my sword. Asuna opened up a trade window with me so she could transfer the three bowls of stew into my inventory.

"See me out?" I asked.

"Of course." She said as I walked towards the door.

Once we were outside on the steps, I couldn't help but look up at the night sky.

"Well, I suppose thanks are in order for the meal." Asuna said as she stepped next to me. "So, thank you!"

"Thank _you_ for cooking it. Maybe next time…" I spoke but cut myself off. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'll never get my hands on something like that again."

"No way, you can make anything yummy if you have the skills to cook."

She looked down and so did I.

"Yeah, well I don't have the skills. I don't have the time to work on those skills."

She didn't answer, she just looked up at the night sky. Eventually, I looked up as well. Okay, calling it "the night sky" was incorrect. The sky on every floor was entirely artificial. The "sky" was actually the ceiling of the floor we were on, the jet black metal ceiling hundreds of feet above us. I don't why there was a sky on each floor like there was in the real world. The game was probably coded that way.

"Looking at this world and seeing what it's become since we got here, is this really what Akihiko Kayaba wanted to create?" I asked out loud.

Asuna just shrugged beside me.

"Well, tomorrow then?" she asked at last.

"Tomorrow." I said as I turned to face her. "Thanks again."

I bowed my head just to emphasize how thankful I was. That only made Asuna laugh. It surprised me when I felt her pat me on the head.

"That's quite enough, Kirito." She said, giggling as she spoke. "Now, you should get home. We have a long day ahead of us."

I stood back up as I blushed light pink.

"Right." I said as I nodded. "Good night, Asuna."

"Good night." She returned the words as I walked down the steps.

 _October 18_ _th_ _, 2024 – Seventy Fourth Floor: Calmdet_

It was a long night. I didn't get back to the Inn until a little past midnight, I think? Agil and Klein talked their heads off, with Klein doing more so. I finally got back to the Inn room that Sachi and I still shared even after a year, I think. She was my last stop, I had decided. Since we both shared the same room, I decided to go to her last.

After eating the bowl of stew as a snack and praising Asuna's cooking skills, we turned in for the night, seeing as Asuna messaged me earlier, telling me to be at the teleport gate in Calmdet at eight thirty tomorrow morning. However, I only got to sleep at two in the morning. SAO offered a number of things to assist the player.

Unfortunately, a button to force you into sleep was not one of them. I had been close to getting to sleep at about one thirty, but of course Sachi woke up from a nightmare. It didn't take all that long to get her to calm down, but she had fallen asleep in a uncomfortable position on my chest.

And at exactly eight o'clock, my alarm went off, waking both of us up. When I told her where I was going, I told Asuna and I were going out today and she asked if she could come along. And well, who was I to say no? So, we headed out shortly after and here we were now. We had been waiting by the teleport gate for half an hour now. I slightly hunched over as I let out a sigh, barely able to stay awake any longer.

"Where is she?" I muttered.

"Patience, Kirito." Sachi said, wide awake next to me. "She'll be here."

I wanted to ask her how she knew that, but I didn't. I just yawned in response. Behind me, for about the hundredth time that morning, the teleport gate activated. I didn't give it much of a second thought. Until I heard the female screaming from behind me.

"Wha…?" I muttered as I turned around.

"Look out!" the female voice said.

Something hit me in the head, and I fell over onto the cobblestone. I let out a grunt of pain as whatever had fallen onto me pushed against my face. I noticed that part of it was resting against my hand, as I had put my hands out before I fell.

"What is this thing?" I grunted out.

I squeezed down on it and found that it had a soft texture to it.

"Squishy?"

I squeezed down once more. The female on top of me suddenly let out a gasp of shock and possibly embarrassment. She let out a scream, before slapping me across the square. I landed against a pillar as I let out a grunt of pain.

"Ow…" I grunted as I stood up, rubbing the back of my head.

I looked over at the female who had fell on me _and_ who had smacked me away, to see that it was Asuna. She had the angriest look imaginable on her face and was blushing. She was also hugging her arms against her chest. I think that I had a pretty good idea of what I had been squeezing. I blushed myself and did the stupidest thing I could have ever done:

I brought my hand into my field of vision and made that same squeezing motion. I gasped with embarrassment. I looked over at Sachi, who was blushing herself, and covering her mouth as she stood up next to Asuna.

"Don't you dare say a word." I said.

She lost it and burst out laughing as she pulled her hands away from her mouth. I rolled my eyes as she continued laughing, while Asuna didn't seem too impressed. I had no idea what to say and so, once again, I made a bad decision.

"Hey, uh, good morning, Asuna!" I said with a chuckle.

She blushed even brighter and bit down on her lip, probably to keep from yelling at me. My eyes went wide, as the color left my face. I regained my posture and tried to figure out the best course of action. She got up and began to run towards me, as the teleport gate opened again. I was sure I was as good as dead, but instead of hitting me, she hid behind me.

"What's wrong?" I asked with surprise and confusion.

Then the last guy that I wanted to see today appeared from the gate. Wearing his Knights of the Blood Oath uniform, Kuradeel looked over at us. Just seeing him made my blood begin to heat up.

"Why are you behaving like this, Ma'am?" he asked. "I'm only following orders!"

I noticed that Asuna had her hand on my arm, maybe out of fear or trying to encourage me to say something, I don't know.

"Please, let's go back to headquarters."

"I won't! Especially not with you!" Asuna exclaimed from her place behind me. "And why were you lurking around my house this morning, huh?"

I gasped with surprise as I turned my head to look at Asuna.

"You have a bad habit of leaving without warning." Kuradeel continued. "So, for the past month, part of my mission is to keep an eye on you in Selmburg."

Okay, full disclosure: it seemed to be that he was falling into the Creeper/Stalker category right now.

"What?" she asked with shock. "Who ordered this?! It wasn't the Commander!"

"With all due respect Ma'am, my mission is to guard you. No matter where you are, including your home."

 _Oh yeah, he's definitely a Creeper,_ I thought.

Asuna gasped.

"No, it doesn't, you idiot!"

She shrunk down further behind me as he sighed.

"I wish you would be a little more understanding about this, Ma'am." He said as he stepped off of the gate and began walking towards us. "Now then, let's return to headquarters."

He began to reach for her as Asuna gasped with fear, but I moved so I blocked his hand.

"Sorry, but I'll be borrowing your second-in-command for today." I said. "So, you'll just have to make do without her."

He looked back at me with anger.

"I'll take responsibility for Asuna's safety. Don't worry, it's not like we're going on a boss raid. You can go." I said. "Oh, and I could protect her a whole lot damn better than you could."

"Insolent punk." He muttered, before letting out a bit of a disturbing growl. "Is that a challenge?"

I shook my head.

"No, it's a statement of truth. She was right yesterday. I am several levels higher than you."

He swiped down and his menu opened.

"If you want her all to yourself that bad, you're gonna have to fight me for her!"

 _Want her all to myself?_ _Who does this guy think he is?_

All of a sudden, an invitation to a Duel appeared in front of me. I didn't want it to come this far! I just wanted to get her away from him! It was obvious that she wanted to get away from him! I looked over my shoulder at her and she gave me a firm nod.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Don't worry. I'll personally report this to the Commander." She said. "In the meantime, kick his ass."

I accepted the invitation to a One-Strike duel and got ready.

"Keep a safe distance, Ma'am." He spoke. "I am going to prove without a single doubt that I can protect you."

I rolled my eyes as I reached back and grabbed my sword. I heard people murmuring about the pending duel as they crowded around us. I watched as he drew his sword and held it at mid height in front of himself. His blade was much more impressive than mine, while my blade was an average size and just a simple sword.

His stance, a slight crouch, hinted at an upper-thrust attack. I got my sword ready as the countdown continued. The white word "Start" eventually appeared and we both leaped forward. He rushed forward with a sinister smile plastered on his face, his initial attack being Avalanche, a great-sword upward dash skill.

Suspecting that it was coming, I went with Sonic Leap, which was another upward charge attack. The duel didn't last long. Once our blades met, sparks exploded from the collision. I flew forward a bit, while Kuradeel was behind me. I heard a clang behind me.

"I can't believe it…" he muttered.

I heard the shatter sound effect of an object or player disappearing. I placed my sword back in its scabbard as the players around us began muttering. I turned around and took notice of the fact that I had broken his sword.

"If you want to try again with another weapon, I'll be glad to take you on." I said. "Or if you want, we can call it a day."

He just looked back before looking away, grumbling as he did. He swiped down and opened his menu, before equipping a different weapon. He turned around and charged towards me, yelling with fury as he did. I was ready to draw my blade again, but within a flash, Asuna appeared between us and disarmed Kuradeel.

"A-Asuna!" Kuradeel spoke her name, not calling her "Lady" or "Ma'am" this time.

Asuna lowered her rapier as she looked at him.

"I don't know how, but somehow he cheated! You saw how he broke my sword! He must have used a trick!"

I sighed and rolled my eyes as I let go of my sword's hilt.

"There's no other way that I could have lost to a beater _like him_!"

She looked down before staring him in the eye.

"Kuradeel, as second in command of the Knights of the Blood Oath, I'm relieving you of your duties as my bodyguard. You're to return to headquarters and wait for further orders."

He just gasped before speaking.

"Y-You can't be serious! Damn you!"

A dark look consumed his face. I stared at him, narrowing my eyes a bit as I did. He eventually relented and walked back to the teleport gate.

"Teleport: Grandzam." He muttered angrily, before he disappeared in a blue ball of energy.

Once he was gone, Asuna let out a sigh of relief and collapsed against me. Before I could even say anything, I heard running footsteps stop at our side. I turned to look at Sachi standing there with a light pink blush on her cheeks.

"Oh my God." She said. "That was _soooo_ awesome!"

I was confused, as she had seen me do things that were more impressive than that duel. Before I could say anything, Asuna spoke as she pushed herself off of me and turned to look at us.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to drag you into that."

"No, it's no big deal." I said. "Besides, that's what friends are for, right?"

She smiled at and nodded at me.

"What's Sachi doing here?" she asked with curiosity.

"She asked if she could come along today. I couldn't say no to her."

"I understand."

"Are you okay? After all that?"

"Yeah, I am. The Guild's getting on my nerves, is all. Maybe because I've been so focused on clearing the game. Or maybe because I'm so demanding of our members."

"Yeah, I can understand that. But it's not like you have a choice. If you didn't do the things you do, do you think that the Guild would have gotten this far?"

She looked at me with surprise. I panicked as I blushed.

"Well, what do I know? I just screw around as a duo player. I haven't even been a part of a Guild in long time. The thing is, if you take a day off to screw around with a slacker like me, so what? That's your decision. No one has the right to complain. Screw them."

She continued looking at me, before a small smile appeared on her face.

"Wow. Thank you for your opinion on the subject."

She put her put her rapier away.

"Okay. I accept your offer and am taking a day off from the Guild."

She patted me on the shoulder as she walked past.

"You can play forward today."

"Wha…? Hey, wait a second!" I said as I walked to catch up with her. "I thought we were going to take turns as forward!"

"Sorry, it's my day off, remember?"

"Wait, seriously!"

She ignored me as she kept walking.

"Seriously!"

She ignored me still.

"Asuna, will you just stop for a minute?"

She stopped and turned to face me.

"Okay, okay! What is it?"

I stopped in front of her as Sachi ran to join us at my side.

"Um, I'm sorry about this morning."

"You're sorry about what this morning?"

"Are you really going to make me say it?"

"I don't follow."

I let out a sigh and blushed as I did it. I made that same squeezing motion with my hands.

"I'm sorry about _that_ this morning."

She just stared at me for several seconds, as her cheeks turned rose red. Then she slugged me in the stomach, knocking the wind out of me. I didn't know that you could get the wind knocked out of you in SAO, but it just happened to me. I fell over onto my knees as Sachi began laughing.

"I accept your apology." She said. "And I don't want to hear you mention that ever again."

She then turned around and walked away from Sachi and I. I eventually caught my breath and looked up to see the two girls walking away from me side by side.

"Hey, girls!" I said as I stood up. "Wait up!"

 _Later_

 _Seventy Fourth Floor: Dungeon_

Asuna fought a Skeleton while Sachi and I faced off against our own Skeleton. As we fought, I kept an eye on Asuna. The Skeleton was no match for her.

 _She sure can handle herself,_ I thought.

Meanwhile, Sachi cut the Skeleton's head off before its head and body shattered.

"Kirito, what's going on with you?" she asked. "I called for a switch! You made me work by myself!"

"Sorry!" I exclaimed, as I turned to see if Asuna needed our help.

She didn't. She struck its torso several times before delivering the final blow across its face.

"Good job!" I said, approaching her as the Skeleton's body shattered.

"Thanks!" she said, turning to face us with a smile on her face. "It would have been a whole lot easier if you two could have helped me though!"

"Um, sorry?" I asked. "We were busy!"

She just laughed.

"It's alright, I was kidding!"

I swiped down, opened my menu and selected my map.

"Come on, we should keep moving."

I walked before, Sachi and Asuna said my name in unison.

"Kirito."

I turned back to look at them.

"What?"

"Look." Asuna said, while Sachi pointed ahead of us.

I looked ahead to what they were pointing at: the giant double door to the Boss's chamber. We all walked forward until we were just a few feet from the door.

"Is that what I think it is?" Asuna asked.

"It's the Boss's Chamber!" Sachi said. "It has to be!"

"I think you're right." I said.

"What do we do?" Asuna asked as she and Sachi both grabbed both of my arms.

I looked at Asuna, then at Sachi, with a blush growing on my face.

"What should we do?" Asuna asked. "Do you think we should look inside?"

I finally regained my posture and looked back at the door as they let go of both my arms.

"Well, we've cleared the whole Dungeon and the Boss never leaves the rooms that they guard. I think we'll be okay if we take a peek."

"Okay." She said.

I turned to look at Sachi.

"Just in case we're wrong, Sachi, I want you to return to the safe area, just until Asuna and I get back. Okay?"

She nodded, turned around and began running without a word. I looked back at Asuna.

"So?" she asked.

"As for you, have a Teleport Crystal ready, just in case."

"Right." She said as she equipped a Teleport Crystal, while I did the same.

"Okay. You ready?"

She nodded without a word and we both put our hands on the doors. We began pushing on it, until it opened the rest of the way by itself. We began to walk further into the room, before we stopped with our weapons ready and waiting for something to happen. We both looked at each other for a split second, before continuing to stare in the darkness.

Slowly, pits lit with blue fire began to light up the room, which eventually revealed the boss. He was gigantic. He had blue fur, blue leathery skin and a furry blue head, with a horn on either side of his head. He also had a giant sword and a snake for a tale, as if that made it any better.

Four bars of HP and a nametag appeared, declaring the Boss as "The Gleam Eyes". Asuna took one step back and then along with me, took off running back down the corridor.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for the chapter. I hope you guys like how I wrote the scene in the middle of the chapter, with Kirito and Asuna. You know exactly what scene I'm talking about. I also hope you like how I wrote the dinner scene between them.

* Well, I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Sentinel951: I just realized how few followers and favorites this has, it really deserve much more for expanding and improving the source material_

Thank you, Sentinel. I'm glad that you think this story expands on and improves on the source material. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki: PoH, Johnny Black, and XaXa are the three of the most elite and deadliest members of Laughing Coffin. Most important is that PoH is the LEADER of Laughing Coffin. XaXa is the the vice-commander. Johnny Black is considered to be (but not technically is not) the third-in-command of Laughing Coffin. This chapter felt better than the original episode to me; however, I was not much a fan of this episode in the series. Definitely can't wait for the next chapter to come out, though._

Thanks for the explanation, Naruto. I'm glad you liked this chapter better than the source material. I'm glad that you were looking forward to this chapter. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Teaming with Klein and Asuna, Kirito clears the Dungeon on the Seventy Fourth Floor. Kirito and Asuna investigate the Boss's room, but flee once they spot the boss.


	9. Chapter 9: The Blue-Eyed Demon

Chapter 9: The Blue-Eyed Demon

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Nine! One difference in this chapter regards Kirito's Dual Blades Skill. That's all I'll say.

* So, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _Seventy Fourth Floor: Dungeon_

Asuna and I stared at the door after Sachi had ran back to the safe zone.

"Okay, you ready?" I asked.

She gave a firm nod and we both put our hands on the doors, and lightly pushed on them. The doors opened and we walked a few feet into the chamber before we came to a stop. We waited and waited for something, anything to happen. But nothing did happen.

"There's nothing in here." I said, before stepping forward a few steps.

"Hey, wait!" Asuna called out with caution.

I turned to look at her.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I won't go very far. Besides, we should find out what kind of boss we're dealing with. How else are we going to figure out how to beat it?"

"Yeah, I know, but it's just…"

Before Asuna could say anything else, it happened. The room roared to life. Two pale flames, blue in color, appeared in front of us. And then more until the entire room was lit up in an eerie blue glow. She gasped with fear as we began to watch the room light up. That was when the Boss appeared in front of us: a monstrosity akin to that of the Minotaur from Greek mythology.

He had blue furry legs, leathery skin up to his head, with two horns on either side and a snake for a tail. A nametag and four health bars appeared, titling the Boss as "The Gleam Eyes". I felt Asuna put her hand on my arm as he approached, raising his sword to attack. His eyes glowed icy blue as he let out a roar as he approached.

That was enough to make Asuna scream, turn around and take off running, with me right behind her. We both ran side by side all the way back to the safe zone, where Sachi was waiting for us.

"What is it?!" she exclaimed with worry. "What did you guys see?!"

I came to a stop along with Asuna, as I bent forward and grabbed my knees, panting from all the running I had just done.

"Big… Demon… Cow… Phew!" I said.

"Really, Kirito?" Asuna asked. "Demon Cow? That's what you came up with? And damn, we only ran like twenty five or fifty feet! You are really out of shape!"

"Screw you." I said as I stood up, close to catching my breath.

Asuna looked at me with a disapproving look and I thought I was in trouble. But it surprised me when she just smiled and began laughing. And that made me laugh, too. Eventually we stopped laughing and Sachi spoke again.

"What did it look like?"

"It was gigantic! At least fifty feet tall!" I said. "With blue fur, leathery skin…"

"Oh, come on!" Asuna replied. "He wasn't _that_ tall!"

I sighed as I looked over at her.

"Okay, so maybe I exaggerated a little bit."

"More than a little bit."

"Guys!" Sachi interrupted us. "Can we get back to the Boss? What is its name?"

"It's called "The Gleam Eyes". And, as Kirito was saying, it has blue fur up to its chest, with leathery skin, two horns on the side of its head and a snake for a tail."

Sachi's eyes filled with fear.

"That sounds really scary!"

We all sighed and sat down against the Dungeon wall.

"One thing's for sure, though. He's going to be a tough one to beat." Asuna said at last.

I nodded.

"Not mentioning the fact that he has a giant sword at his disposal. You're right."

"If what you guys say is true, a Boss like that has to have special attacks." Sachi chimed in.

"We'll have to put tanks in the front row and keep switching out, just to wear it down."

"Yeah. And it wouldn't hurt to have ten or so shield users."

"Shield users, huh?"

The way Asuna asked, it sounded like she was suspicious of me.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked as I looked at her.

"You are. You're hiding something, aren't you?"

I gasped with surprise, before I quickly regained a straight face.

"What are you talking about?"

"I just realized something. The biggest advantage of using a one-handed sword is you can also use a shield. But you know what? I don't think I've ever seen you using one."

Sachi leaned forward so I could see her face.

"She's got a point, Kirito. Why don't you use a shield?"

 _Sachi was suspecting something, too? I was keeping something from my teammates, but I couldn't tell them!_

"I don't use a shield because it will slow down my rapier." Asuna continued. "Others don't, because they think it looks dumb."

I crossed my arms over my chest and looked away from them.

"And how come you're not using the sword you commissioned from Liz? Very suspicious."

I grunted but said nothing.

"Mmm-hmm." Asuna let out a grunt of her own, as if I had just confirmed her suspicions.

I continued to say nothing. After several seconds, she spoke again.

"Oh, never mind!"

My eyes widened with surprise.

"It's rude to ask people to justify their skills." She continued.

I let out a sigh of relief as I looked up at the ceiling. I heard Asuna open her menu next to me.

"Since it's gotten so late, we might as well have lunch here."

"Really?" I asked with surprise as I looked at her, to see that she had materialized a picnic basket. "Did you make it yourself?"

She looked at me with surprise before she looked down at the basket with a smile on her face.

"Yep. But you better take your gloves off before you eat."

"Oh, sure!" I said, as I did that.

"Here you go." She said as she handed me a sandwich.

"Is there anything for me in there?" Sachi asked in a small voice.

We turned to look at her.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that you'd be coming with us today and I didn't plan ahead." Asuna said. "I only packed two sandwiches."

"Oh." She said as she looked down at the ground.

"That's alright." I said. "Sachi, come here. I'll split mine with you."

"Can you even do that?" Asuna asked as Sachi got and began walking to me.

"I'll just split it in half." I said as I prepared to do so. "The durability will most likely go down, so we'll have to eat fast."

I split it in half and gave the bigger half to Sachi.

"Here." I said as I handed it to her.

As she took it, our hands touched for a split second and she blushed.

"T-Thanks!" she said in a panicked voice as she looked away from me.

I gave her a strange look as she did that, but I said nothing. I bit into my half of the sandwich before it could disappear.

"This is so good!" Sachi exclaimed.

I looked at her as she chomped down on her half.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." I muttered as I continued eating. "How do you get it to taste so amazing, Asuna?"

Asuna opened up her menu again. Suddenly, several windows appeared around us.

"Chop it up to a whole year of training and studying." She said. "Aincrad has everything you need. There's about a hundred different seasonings. I made everything just by calculating all the parameters by the flavor-recreation engine."

She picked up a small bottle from the basket.

"This was made with grogua seed, shugra leaf and calim water." She said as she put a few drops on my hand.

I brought my hand to my mouth and licked the greenish liquid.

"It's mayonnaise!" I said with surprise.

"And I made this with abilba seed, sag leaves and ulafish bone." She said as she brought out another bottle.

She put a few drops of a purple liquid on her pointer finger, probably to drop them onto my palm, but I couldn't wait. I lurched forward and engulfed her finger with my mouth, both surprising and scaring her.

"Whoa! What are you doing?! Off, off!"

I retracted from her finger, with an embarrassed blush on my cheeks.

"Sorry…" I said. "I guess I got a little impatient."

She just stared at me with a slightly angered look, before the look on her face softened.

"It's alright." She said at last.

I heard chuckling behind us. I turned around, to see that Sachi was chuckling with a sad smile on her face.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing." She said as she looked away from us.

Okay, now I was confused. Sachi had been acting weird lately. But I had no time to dwell on that now. I turned back to Asuna.

"Asuna, that tasted exactly like soy sauce!" I exclaimed.

She looked back at me with surprise. She eventually giggled.

"You're right. I used the sauce on the sandwiches out of that."

"Amazing! It's perfect!" I said.

As I said that, the rest of my sandwich half shattered.

"Aw…" I said as I stared down at my empty hands.

"Guess you should have been eating instead of talking!" Asuna teased in a playful tone.

"Ah, whatever. I'm just glad I was able to get at least one bite! Anyway, have you thought about selling these? Because you'd make a fortune!"

She looked back at me with surprised once again.

"It's that good, huh?"

I was about to encourage her, but I decided to say something else.

"Wait." I said as I crossed my arms over my chest. "You can't sell it."

She gasped with surprise.

"B-But why not?!"

I turned to look at her with a serious look on my face.

"Because there wouldn't be any left for me!"

"Wha…?" was all she could muster as she stared at me, before sighing. "My God, you're so greedy. If you like it that much, I could always make you your own batch."

Before I could say anything, one of the gates near us activated. I jumped up and had my sword at the ready before Sachi or Asuna could even react. But it was a false alarm. It was only Klein.

"Klein?" I asked with confusion.

"Oh, hey guys!" he said with a smile on his face. "I thought I was getting close!"

"Close to what?" Sachi asked,

"Close to you guys!"

"What? So, you followed us?" I asked.

He shrugged.

"I wasn't sure of what to do for the Guild today, so I decided to take the day off. And when I looked on my friend list, I saw all three of you were together. So, I've been trying to catch up for the last hour or two."

I turned to Asuna.

"Two people from your Guild took the day off?" I said. "That can't be good for business."

"You're telling me." She said as she looked back, before looking at Klein again. "Okay, so I did take the day off. But what makes you think that _you_ can take a day off? What have you done lately for the Guild, Klein?"

His face turned red and he began laughing, as he scratched the back of his neck.

"What? I can't visit my three favorite players in Aincrad?" he asked.

"Three favorite players?" I asked. "Well, who's your favorite out of all of us?"

"Pfft! Easy. My favorite one of you is Sachi! Because she's so cute!"

"Eep!" Sachi let out a grunt of surprise.

I looked at her as she blushed light pink, before I turned back to Klein.

"Hey, what about me?!" I asked.

He started laughing.

"Just kidding! You're my favorite, Kiri-Dude! On the account of I met you first!"

"That's what I thought."

"But just so you know, you're kinda cute, too!"

"Yeah and you look like a scruffy mountain man!" I exclaimed as I crossed my arms and turned my head, looking away from him.

Sachi and Asuna began laughing at the bickering between Klein and I. Before anyone could say anything else, I heard the sound of marching footsteps.

"Kirito, players!" Sachi said.

I turned my head forward as Klein turned around to look at the approaching party of players. There were at least ten players in the party, and they were all outfitted in the typical army uniform. They were Aincrad's only "Army" and they were operating out of Blackiron Palace, in the Town of Beginnings on the first floor.

Their group were made up of about thirty percent of the remaining population of Aincrad. Honestly, I'd always tried to stay out of their way. However, it looked like that wasn't an option today.

"Is that…" Asuna began to speak, but I interrupted to confirm what she was about to say.

"It's an Army."

"It's the big Guild that runs Floor One." Klein chimed in. "What are they doing up here?"

"They were almost slaughtered on Floor Twenty Five." Asuna said. "Instead of clearing levels, they've been focused on building up their numbers. Klein and I haven't seen them on the front lines in a while."

I let out a sigh as the came to a stop.

"At ease!" the man in charge exclaimed to his troops.

His men all collapsed as he turned and walked towards us.

"I'm with the Aincrad Liberation Army." He said once he reached us. "Lieutenant Colonel Corvatz."

"I'm Kirito. Duo Player." I introduced myself to him.

"Have you cleared the area up ahead?" he asked.

"Yeah. We also have a map, with directions to the Boss Room."

"Hmm." He said as he put his hand out. "Right. Then hand over that map and we'll be on our way."

Everyone behind me let out a gasp.

"You want us to just give it to you?!" Klein asked. "Do you even know how much of a pain in the ass mapping is?!"

I was surprised by the way Klein spoke, considering he wasn't even with us for the mapping process.

"We share our information and resources with civilian players all the time!" Corvatz shouted at him. "And we don't charge a thing for it! We maintain order in the chaos of battle, so that all players can leave this world as quickly as possible! Therefore, it is your duty to cooperate with us! So, hand over that map!"

Corvatz was right. Well, it was our duty to provide anything we could with other players, not necessarily the Army. But the Army were other players. So, whether I liked it or not, I had to give them the map, anything to help progress the game faster.

"Listen, you…" Asuna began to speak and I stepped in front of her, cutting her off.

"Easy." I said as I stepped forward. "When we got back to town, I was going to sell the map data anyway. Anything that can get us to the final floor faster."

"Come on, Kirito! You're being too nice!" Klein argued.

"It's not about the money." I said as I invited Corvatz to a trade window.

He tapped the accept button once I had transferred the data to his window and that was that. He let out a grunt of acknowledgement.

"Thanks for cooperating." He said as he turned back around.

"By the way, if you're planning to hit the Boss, I wouldn't recommend it." I called out to him.

"That is my decision to make." He said without turning around.

I let out a gasp of surprise.

"Hey, I just looked inside that room, pal! And you can't beat that Boss when your troops are half dead! Look at 'em! They're exhausted!"

"Nonsense!" he said as he turned to face me. "My men are tougher than that! They won't quit until I say so! On your feet! Come on, move!"

All of his men got to their feet, but most of them struggled to do so. One of them even had to use his sword as a cane of sorts, which only confirmed my thoughts.

"Oh, man." Klein replied as they walked off. "Are those guys going to be okay?"

"I'm sure they know what they're doing." Asuna replied. "They won't rush the Boss without checking it out first. Right?"

"Maybe we should keep an eye on them anyway?" Sachi asked.

I nodded with agreement.

"One thing's for sure." I said as I turned to Klein. "I don't know who's nicer: you or me?"

Sachi began walking back in the direction of the Boss Room and I followed her.

 _Sometime Later_

Klein slayed the final Lizard Man in our path.

"That's the last one." He said. "Only thing left is the Boss's Room. Maybe those guys used some kind of teleportation thingy to go back?"

I slung my sword over my shoulder and back into its scabbard, as I heard a scream from somewhere in the dungeon. There was silence between Klein, Asuna, Sachi and I. I turned to Asuna.

"Asuna, Sachi!" I said.

Asuna nodded, while Sachi verbally acknowledged me and I took off running with them behind me.

"Hey, wait for me!" Klein cried out, as I heard more enemies spawning in behind him.

 _No time to help Klein now! Have to see where that scream came from!_

The three of us kept running until the Boss Room came into view and saw that its doors were open.

"Idiots!" Asuna said.

We came to a stop in front of the open doors.

"Hey, are you guys okay?!" I called out.

I gasped once I saw the scene inside of the room. Corvatz's troopers weren't doing so hot. Not even half of them were on their feet.

"Don't just stand there!" I yelled as The Gleam Eyes began to attack again. "Use your Teleport Crystals!"

"We can't!" one of the troopers exclaimed. "The crystals aren't working!"

"I've never heard of a trap like this being in a Boss Room before!" Asuna said next to me.

As she said that, the day that the Moonlit Black Cats met their demise flashed within my mind. I shook my head as I tried to purge the thought.

 _No, not another one! Not after that day!_

I turned my head towards Sachi.

"Sachi, get out of here. Leave the Dungeon and teleport back to town!"

"What about you?" she asked with surprise.

"Damn it, don't worry about me! Just do what you're told!"

Sachi looked at me with anger, before she turned and ran down the corridor, nonetheless. I turned back and before Asuna could say anything, I drew my sword and leaped into the fray.

"Kirito!" Asuna called behind me. "This is suicide!"

I ignored her and struck the Boss from behind before he could have the chance to attack Corvatz's unit again. Unfortunately, I got his attention. And he was pissed. He turned around and once he got his sights on me, he let out a roar and thrust his sword towards me.

"Screw it!" I heard Asuna say from behind as I dodged the blade.

I turned around to see Asuna running towards the fight.

"No, stay back!" I exclaimed.

Unfortunately, when I turned around, it left me vulnerable to attack. I looked up as The Gleam Eyes approached and I swear my life flashed before my eyes. He raised his blade and was about to strike, but I was surprised when Asuna jumped in front of me, meeting his blade with her rapier.

"Get out!" she exclaimed without turning to look at me.

Instead of doing what she told me, I got up and joined her in attacking the Boss, as Klein attempted to help the remaining forces leave the room. As The Gleam Eyes set his sights on me once again, Asuna struck him in the back, getting his attention once more. They began exchanging strikes and Asuna was pretty good at fending them off, however she eventually caught one in the side.

But she just kept fighting him. This had to stop. I struck the Boss again, regaining his attention once more.

"You need to get out of here, right now!" I exclaimed to her as the Boss approached me. "I can handle this!"

"Are you kidding?" she asked. "We're your teammates! And whether you ask for it or not, we're going to help you when it looks like you need help!"

 _Damn them for being so loyal,_ I thought.

I dodged as The Gleam Eyes tried to hit me again.

 _The only way this ends is if I use it. I need at least ten or twenty seconds. All of these people are depending on us, on me! I have to use it!_

"Klein, Asuna!" I exclaimed. "I need you to keep him occupied for just a minute! Keep him off me!"

"Yeah!" Klein replied. "You got it!"

I swiped down and opened my menu, going as fast as I could. I opened my skills list as fast as my finger would allow me to. I had no time to mess up, my movements had to be precise. I heard Klein get knocked aside. I finally found it, the skill titled "Dual Blades".

"Okay, I'm ready!" I exclaimed.

Asuna blocked another strike from the Boss.

"Switch out!" I exclaimed as I ran towards them.

Asuna backed away and allowed me to take the Boss. I struck my blade against his and reached over my shoulder, as the sword Liz had made for me appeared on my back in its own scabbard. I brought out Dark Repulsor and cut The Gleam Eyes across the chest with it. He planned to strike again, but I used both of my swords to counter his blade. I pushed with enough strength on both swords to get him to back off for a second.

 _Okay, here goes._

"Starburst Stream!" I exclaimed as I began striking the Boss over and over again, covering his entire torso with a zig-zag of cuts.

"W-What the hell kind of skill is that?!" I heard Klein exclaim from behind.

I ignored him and kept fighting, watching as bit-by-bit, the Boss's HP began to drop.

 _Faster! I need to strike faster!_

I struck him in his torso again and parried another strike, before beginning again. In a moment of humor, perhaps to the Boss it was humorous, he struck me in the face with a punch. I grunted with anger.

 _Faster!_

I continued striking him, faster than I thought possible, until he caught one of my blades in his grasp. He tried to pull the sword from my hand, but I wouldn't let him. As he tried to pull the sword from my hand, he went in for another downward strike. It didn't end well, at least not for him. It ended with him hunched over me, with my sword impaled through his abdomen. And just like that, he began to glow and shattered into thousands of glittering shards.

I remained standing there after it was over, not even leaving the stance that I was in. But even so, I didn't believe that it was over.

"Is it… over?" I whispered aloud.

I felt sluggish and weak, as if I'd just gone a hundred rounds. A congratulations message appeared in front of me as I staggered on my feet, struggling to stay upright. I was exhausted. The result menu appeared in front of me, but I didn't look at it. All I cared about was my HP, it was near empty. I almost died.

 _I almost died? I almost died…_

The next thing I knew, I was looking at the ceiling, the colors faded from my field of vision and I was cloaked in darkness.

 _Minutes Later_

"Kirito!" I heard Asuna's voice.

"Wake up, Kirito!" I heard another female voice. "Kirito!"

It was Sachi. As I opened my eyes, I could see Asuna and Klein standing above me. And Sachi was clinging tightly to me, with her arms around my neck. I let out a gasp of air, as I came to the realization that it was over. The first thing I was Sachi's face. Her eyes were full of tears. Once she saw my eyes, she hugged me tighter.

"Ow, my head." I muttered.

I looked around me and saw that all of the Army members were standing above me.

"That was too close." I said as I looked up at them. "How long was I out for?"

"Not even a couple minutes." Sachi said, her voice muffled from her face being buried in my shoulder.

"You're an idiot." Asuna said.

I looked at her.

"What?" I asked.

"You're reckless! You could have gotten yourself killed!"

I looked away, as the image of the Moonlit Black Cats dying flashed in my mind once again.

 _I couldn't just sit back and do nothing. Not after what happened that day!_

I looked up at Klein.

"How many did we lose?"

"Just one." He said. "Corvatz survived and he's probably going to be taking some off time after this stunt. It would surprise me if the Army even allows him to lead after this."

I nodded, as my breath hitched in my throat.

 _One of them died. I did my best and I was still unable to save them all._

"We haven't lost a player in a Boss Fight since Floor Sixty Seven." Asuna replied.

"That wasn't a Boss Fight!" Klein said as he looked at her. "That was suicide! Corvatz is a damn fool!"

"You might want to keep it down." I mused. "He's still alive. He can still hear you."

They both looked at me with disapproval.

"You're not off the hook, Kiri-Dude. What the hell did you do just now?"

I just stared up at him.

"I don't think you want to know." I said.

"Oh, come on! I've never seen anything like that before!"

I looked away again.

"It's just an extra skill I picked up."

"Just an extra skill?!" Asuna asked with an irritated tone of voice.

I looked at her.

"Okay, so I can dual wield swords. So, what?"

"Wh… A-Are there prerequisites?!" Klein exclaimed as he leaped forward.

"If I knew that, I'd have shared it by now."

Klein and Asuna both opened a window and scrolled for a minute or so.

"It's not on the Info Broker's skill list. Guess it's exclusive to you. Hey, you've got a unique skill!"

"I can't believe you." Asuna said.

Klein turned to look at her.

"What?"

"You are totally encouraging him!"

"Encouraging how?"

"Or, well, or you're at least making him feel like this whole thing is okay!"

"I'm not sure I follow."

Asuna got angry.

"He kept that skill a secret from us! How could he do that?!"

Klein looked at her and then at me.

"She has a point."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" I exclaimed. "She has a point?"

"You kept this from us, Kirito." He said, not calling me "Kiri-Dude" for once. "How could you do that to us?"

I looked down.

"About six months ago, I was scrolling through my skill window and it was just… there. "Dual Wielding"."

No one said anything.

"If people found out that I had a skill like this, people are going to be pissed that I have something that I don't. So, I decided to secretly train myself, while keeping the skill under wraps. I wouldn't use it unless I absolutely had to."

"And today…" Klein began to speak, but I interrupted.

"Today was one of those days."

"You said that you've been secretly training yourself." Asuna said. "How often have you been "training"?"

I looked up.

"For a couple hours every night since I got that sword that Liz made me."

She just stared at me.

"What?" I finally asked.

She just turned around and stormed away. I just stared in confusion as she stormed out of the Boss Room without another word to me. I looked up at Klein, who gave me a stern look.

"Look, man. I think I know why you kept it from us." He said. "You didn't want people to get jealous that you had a skill that they couldn't get. But that doesn't make it any better. You _kept something from us_. We're your friends man and you never told us."

"Klein?" I asked with a slight tone of fear.

He turned his back on me and began walking, before he stopped and looked at me over his shoulder.

"We're still your friends, Kirito." He said. "But this… This… You need to tell us stuff, you can't just keep things from us that could benefit the party."

I looked down again.

 _I know. I kept something from them. I kept something that they could have helped me build up, but no. I just had to keep it from them. And now, two of my friends are pissed at me._

Klein and Asuna walked out with the remaining Army members without another word, leaving me on the floor and Sachi hugging herself against me. It felt like hours that we sat there, or laid there, rather, with how Sachi was positioned. It was only when they were gone that she spoke.

"I get why you did it."

"What?" I asked.

She lifted herself off me and looked at me.

"I know why you did it. You weren't sure how'd they react to such a skill, so you decided to keep it to yourself."

"Um, okay."

 _Why did I keep it to myself? I mean, why did I really keep it to myself? Did I really keep to myself because I didn't want people to be jealous? Or was there another reason?_

"You know, while we're talking, we need to talk. Sachi, I told you to go back to town. Why didn't you?"

She looked down before she looked back up at me.

"Kirito, you can't always be here for me. You're not always going to be able to protect me." She said as she leaned forward. "Although I appreciate your effort. And plus, it was awesome how you defeated that Boss."

And then, she did something that surprised me: She kissed me on the cheek! She pulled away and looked at me.

"Sachi?" I asked.

She looked away and blushed. It was time. I was going to ask her what was going on with her.

"Sachi, you've been acting weird lately. You act like you're my number one fan, you thought it was awesome how I defeated Kuradeel in that duel and how I defeated the Boss." I said. "And you blushed and looked away from me when our hands touched when I gave you half of my sandwich. What is going on with you?"

She looked down.

"Well, I guess the cat is out of the bag, isn't it?" she finally asked.

"What does that mean? Sachi?"

She looked up at me.

"I'm not just your biggest fan, Kirito." She said as a bright red blush spread across her cheeks.

"Sachi?"

"I have a massive crush on you, Kirito."

My eyes widened.

 _How had I not seen it before? All the signs pointed to Sachi having a crush on me. All of the stuff she does: blushing, complimenting me, hell even getting to be around me, it's because she's fallen for me! How come I never saw it?_

"Well, how come you never told me?" I asked, trying my best to keep a straight face.

Sachi looked away from me, still blushing.

"Because, I can't." she whispered just loud enough for me to hear.

"Why?"

She looked back at me.

"Because, I'm not the girl that you're supposed to be with."

"What? Then, who am I supposed to be with?"

"Do you really not know the answer?"

I shook my head. She looked down.

"It's Asuna. Asuna is the one you're supposed to be with."

I was taken with shock once she said that. Once I got over my shock, I spoke.

"But, Asuna can't be the girl for me! We hate each other!"

She let out a sigh.

"What's not to like about her, Kirito? Are you saying that you don't like anything about her?"

Sachi had gotten me into a tough spot. The truth was, there were multiple things that I liked about Asuna. I just never told her because I was ashamed to tell you. You know, because of how many fights and arguments we got into on the regular? I let out a sigh.

"Okay, you're right. There's hardly anything to dislike about her. She's beautiful. She has amazing chestnut brown hair and her brown eyes are pretty to look at."

Sachi smiled.

"So, you admit that you like her?"

"Kind of."

"Why don't you just tell her?"

I looked at her with surprise and confusion.

"Sachi, Asuna and I don't get along. A romantic relationship between us wouldn't work. She and I hate each other. I can't tell her these things, because it would make things awkward between us."

"How do you know that you and Asuna couldn't work as a couple?"

"I just know. And while we're on the topic, let's go back to you. How do you know that we couldn't work?"

"Stop."

"You don't even know, Sachi. How do you know that I don't have feelings for you?"

"Stop."

"Stop what?"

"Don't tell me if you like me or not. Please Kirito, don't give me an answer."

"Why not?"

She looked up at me with the saddest look in her eyes, that it hurt me to see her like this.

"Because, if you tell me that you like me too, and even if it's just a lie, just to tell me what I want to hear, I won't be able to keep my hands off of you."

 _Yeah, she's totally gaga for me._

"And I can't take you for myself. I can't take away your chance to be with the girl you should really be with."

She spoke as tears ran down her cheeks. I could feel my heart breaking; shattering in my chest. Seeing Sachi this sad broke my heart. All I wanted to do was hug her. But she was basically telling me not to.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Yes, there is. You can wait until the time is right and start a relationship with her. It's not what I want but seeing you together as a happy couple would make me happy."

It was impossible to describe how bad I felt right now.

"Sachi, can I at least ask you how long it's been?"

She looked confused.

"How long what has been?"

"How long have you had these feelings for me?"

"I would say since the day you saved my life, the same day that the Black Cats died."

I was surprised. Sachi had been in love with me for that long?

"But please Kirito, like I said, don't ever give me an answer. I can't take away the chance for you to be with the girl you should be with."

"Sachi, I…"

"Don't say anything. Kirito, I am in love with you. I know that. But I'm not the girl you're supposed to be with. It would make me happy to see you two together."

"Sachi, are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes. Well, no. The heartbreak will take a while to get over. But if you can be happy with Asuna one day, that would make me happy."

The words shook me to my core. What she said had reminded me of what Liz had told me a while ago. But if this is really what Sachi wanted for me, I had to try.

"Okay, we'll see what happens." I said at last.

"Thank you." She said with a sigh.

We sat there in silence for a while, before she spoke again.

"Kirito, can you do something else for me? Please?"

I looked back at her.

"Of course, Sachi. What is it?"

She then practically jumped on me and hugged me once again.

"Hold me for a little while longer, please? I may never be able to again, so if this is the last time I'll ever get to hold you, I want it to last for a while."

We sat there as I wrapped my arms around her in return.

"Thank you. Just for a little while longer." She whispered.

And so, we sat there for a few more minutes, just enjoying each other's company.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for this chapter! I hope you all enjoyed! I hope I didn't disappoint with the reveal of Kirito's dual blades. And I wrote the scene with Kirito and Sachi at the very end there to be bittersweet, so let me know if I nailed that feeling.

* So, Kirito has revealed that he may like Asuna, so there's that. Does it make sense that Klein and Asuna are both kind of ticked off at Kirito, since he kept his new skill a secret from them?

* Once again, I hope I didn't do anything wrong in this chapter, I hope it was a good addition to my adaptation. Anyway, I'm going to go though. So, have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 8): The original episode had some funny moments that I like a lot (and laughed at). Your version of this episode/chapter improved the quality of these same moments, AND increased the amount moments that I found really funny!_

 _Next episode/chapter is considered to be one of my three most favorite episodes/chapters of Season 1, along with episodes/chapters 1 and 14. I was already waiting in anticipation for episode/chapter 8. I truly have little patience with how much anticipation I have for episode/chapter 9!_

Thanks, Naruto. Well, I'm glad my version improved the quality and increased the amount of funny moments. I hope I didn't disappoint with this chapter. And just so you know, episode 14 is by far my favorite one to adapt. I can't wait to adapt that episode! Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Alex Focker (Chapter 8): Now I'm excited asfuck for the next chapter with kirito dual wielding, this is so damn exciting!_

Thanks, Alex. I'm glad you thought it was exciting. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: With Klein and Asuna's freedom hanging in the balance, Kirito agrees to duel Heathcliff, the leader of the Knights of the Blood Oath.


	10. Chapter 10: Crimson Killing Intent

Chapter 10: Crimson Killing Intent

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Ten! So, in the last chapter, I left a few things out from the original episode that I thought would fit better in this chapter. So, that's why they'll be appearing here.

* Also, I didn't mention this. I'd understand how some readers may be upset how Kirito decided not to give Sachi an answer regarding his feelings, but for the die hard Kirisuna fans, this sets him on the path to eventually be with Asuna. Just thought I'd say that.

* And also, I'm just going to say this. Prepare for a shock in this chapter that doesn't follow the source material. That's all I'll say. With that said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _October 19_ _th_ _, 2024 – Fiftieth Floor: Algade_

I was sitting upstairs above Agil's shop, about two days after the Dungeon had been cleared. He was currently reading from a newspaper. Just so you know, Aincrad's newspapers weren't the typical newspaper that you'd see in real life. It was a window the size of a touch pad. And all of the information was on a scroll list.

It didn't like record daily happenings or anything like that, either. Well, sometimes it did. But most of the time it was made up of a collection of stories cobbled together by players.

"A blue demon that annihilated a big squad of Army guys." Agil read aloud. "And a fifty-hit combo from a dual-wielder who took out the Boss by himself. I can't believe what a big deal they're making out of this thing!"

He began laughing.

"Yeah, it's blowing up right in my face." I said glumly with my chin resting in my hand. "A buttload of swordsmen and Info Brokers showed up at the Inn this morning. Now I need a new place to stay because they know where I live."

The door opened to my right.

"Well, that's kind of sort of your own fault." Lisbeth said as she walked out of the door with a box of supplies. "You said that it'd be our little secret, but you went and blabbed it to everyone."

She snickered as she smirked at me. I forgot that I had told Liz what I needed the extra sword for. Once I told her my secret, she promised to keep her mouth shut. I let out a sigh. Just then, I heard multiple sets of footsteps coming up the stairs. We all looked to the right and eventually, Klein, Sachi and Asuna ran into the room.

"Kiri-Dude!" Klein exclaimed.

"We got trouble!" Asuna finished for him.

I rolled my eyes.

"Bigger than my two friends who are pissed at me right now?" I asked.

"Don't joke around like that!" Klein said as he slammed his hands down onto the table. "It's Heathcliff, the leader of The Knights of the Blood Oath! He wants to talk to you!"

I let out a sigh.

"What could he possibly want to talk to me about?"

"I don't know." Asuna spoke. "But Kirito, news of your new skill got out fast! It has to be about that!"

"Alright, alright. Well, when does he want to see me?"

"Now, pretty much!" Klein exclaimed.

I looked down at the table and sighed.

"Okay." I said. "Let's go."

 _Later – Fifty Fifth Floor: Grandzam_

I stood in Grandzam with them, staring up at the towering castle that served as the headquarters for the Knights of the Blood Oath.

"Come on." I said as I moved forward. "Let's get this over with."

Besides me, Heathcliff was the only player in the game to possess a unique skill. It was called "Divine Blade" and it was a skill that balanced defense and offense. He also wore a giant shield fashioned into the shape of a cross, along with his sword. There was also a rumor going around that no one had ever seen his HP fall into the yellow zone.

One of the definitive truths of Aincrad was that nothing could break his shield. I was actually kind of nervous. I had no idea why he would want to see me, but I could only think of him wanting to bribe me into joining The Knights of the Blood Oath. And I wouldn't do it.

"Hey." Asuna said to me.

I looked over at her.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Once all of this is over, Klein and I are going to take time off from the Guild."

I looked back at her with surprise.

"Why?" I asked.

She looked away.

"I meant it when I said I was going to party with you the other day." She said.

"Why would you want to hang out with me? The guy who kept a secret from you guys?"

"You may have kept a secret from us, and we don't approve, but we're still your friends."

"Yeah, man!" Klein chimed in. "We don't hate you because of it!"

"Speak for yourself." Asuna replied as she walked forward.

Klein and I both looked at each other with confusion. I looked back at her as she walked forward.

"Asuna?" I asked confusion. "You don't mean that, do you?"

"What if I do?" she asked without looking at me.

"Asuna?"

She stopped walking and stood in place for a few seconds. Then, to my surprise, she turned around with a smile on her face.

"You didn't really think that I hate you for this, did you?" she asked.

"Um…"

She stepped up to me.

"Sure, I don't like what you did, but that doesn't mean that I hate you, okay?"

"Um, okay. Sure."

After that, she didn't say anything, nor did I. A blush began to form on my face and coincidentally, she began to blush as well. We stood there for a few seconds just looking at each other, before someone from behind us cleared their throat. I turned around to look at Klein, as well as to see Sachi smiling. I didn't need any help in telling what she was thinking.

"Hey, don't we have somewhere we need to be?" he asked.

"Right." Asuna said. "We should go."

We began walking again and once again, I looked up at the castle, feeling somewhat intimidated. Before you ask, from what I had heard about the newly opened Seventy Fifth Floor, it was apparently built like an Roman city. Grandzam, Floor Fifty Five's main city, was sometimes also called the "City of Iron".

"Pretty impressive, isn't it?" Asuna asked as I looked at the castle.

"Yeah." I nodded.

"Before this, our headquarters was just a small cabin in a remote section of the Thirty Ninth Floor."

"Well, that's quite an upgrade."

"Maybe. Sure, I complained about how cramped the cabin was and I'm not saying it's bad that we've moved up through the ranks, but I just hate this town. It's so cold."

"Yeah. Let's uh, let's just get this over with so we can get something to eat."

She sighed.

"My God, is eating all you care about?"

I shrugged.

"Come on, as you said, let's get this over with."

We all walked continued walking forward. We eventually came to a wide staircase that led up to a large, open doorway that was guarded by soldiers wearing heavy armor and holding frighteningly long spears. I tried to get over the intimidation I was feeling and began to climb the staircase with them.

Klein and Asuna gave them a salute as we walked past and into the castle. The first floor lobby of the tower we had walked into was made of the same black steel as the rest of the city. It also served as nothing else then a giant stairwell; there was no one inside. The staircase started at the far end of the room.

We began climbing the stairs, as our footsteps echoed throughout the tower. It was almost as if the tower went on forever. It was so tall in fact, that a player with the most basic strength stat would give up halfway through. Eventually, we finally came to a stop in front of a nondescript metal door.

"This is it?" I asked, breaking the silence.

Asuna only nodded. She gave the door a high pitched knock and opened it without waiting for an answer. Once the door had opened, I had to squint at the overwhelming amount of light coming through the doorway. The room was large and circular, and it took up the entire floor of the tower.

All of the walls were made of clear glass, so you could see outside. There was a large semicircular desk in the center of the room, surrounded by five chairs, each with a man sitting in them. I didn't recognize any of the men on either side, but it was impossible not to recognize the man in the middle.

It was Heathcliff. He looked like he was in his early twenties and had a scholarly look to him. He had grayish bangs hanging out over a straight forehead. He wore a crimson robe that made him look less than a swordsman and more like a magician that this game lacked.

"Outside of Boss fights, I don't believe we've ever actually met, Kirito." He addressed me first.

"Well, there was that conference on Floor Sixty Seven. We talked a little bit there." I replied in return. "Commander Heathcliff."

He bowed his head a bit as he closed his eyes.

"Yes, that was a difficult battle, wasn't it? We almost lost a few players there, too. We may be the top Guild, but we barely get by with the amount of troops we have. And now, here you are, trying to poach one of our most important players. I don't know what to say."

 _Poach? Okay, well Asuna wanted out of the Guild for a while. And now, I guess I had to try to convince this guy to let her go? Hey, what am I doing here, anyway?!_

Asuna began to speak, but I put my hand out in front of her.

"Well, if she's that important, you should have done a better job picking her bodyguard."

"You have my sincerest apologies for any trouble you may have had with Kuradeel. But you must understand that we simply cannot allow our second-in-command to leave the Guild just like that."

I let out a grunt, as did Asuna.

"If you want her, you'll have to use your dual blades to take her from us."

 _Is he implying what I think he's implying? Does he want me to duel him?_

"If you can defeat me in combat, you'll be free to take Asuna with you. On the other hand, if you lose, you will join The Knights of the Blood Oath."

I froze. It seemed that my avoiding joining a Guild had come to an end. I stood there dumbfounded and I could tell without even looking at them, that I knew that Klein and Asuna were looking at me. I had to come off as tough.

"Yeah, okay. If you want to settle this with swords, that's fine by me. But if I lose, I want my own condition."

"What do you want?"

"If I lose, you have to allow my companion Sachi into the Guild, as well. If you don't take her as well, I won't join you."

Klein and Asuna both gasped with surprise.

"Kirito, no!" Asuna said.

"What are you thinking?!" Klein exclaimed.

Heathcliff raised his hand, and everyone went silent. Everyone looked back at him.

"Okay. Alright, we'll have a duel."

No one said a word. Not even Asuna could say anything.

 _October 20_ _th_ _, 2024 – Seventy Fifth Floor: Collinia_

It was the day. The big "Living Legend, Heathcliff vs Dual Wielding Demon, Kirito" day. Don't ask me, I didn't come up with the title.

"Oh my God, you're such an idiot!" Asuna exclaimed for the thousand time.

"I think that's the thousandth time you told me that." I said.

"Don't even joke about that!"

"I'm not!"

We were in the "locker room" I guess, of the arena? And we were arguing before the duel would start.

"How could you agree to a duel?!"

"I said I was sorry! And besides, it's not like he gave me a choice!"

"He didn't give you a choice?! You could have talked him down! _We_ could have talked him down!"

She was shouting at me way too much and it was pissing me off.

"You should know that you're not the only one with a unique skill. The Commander has one, too."

"Yeah, I know. The Divine Blade. It maximizes his defensive and offensive moves. His attack is strong, but his defense is incredible."

"No one's ever seen the Commander's HP bar dip down into the yellow zone, too." Klein chimed in.

I knew that, too. And oh yeah, it was kind of easy to forget that Klein and Sachi were in the room with us.

"His invincibility is above the normal game balance." Asuna agreed.

"I know." I said.

"What if you lose? I don't care if Klein and I don't get our leave of absence, but…"

"I do!" Klein interjected.

"Shut up." Asuna and I said in unison.

He backed up. She turned back to look at me.

"Anyway, I don't care about the leave of absence. I care about the fact that if you lose, you'll have to join The Knights of the Blood Oath! Sachi, too!"

I bowed my head a little. I stood up at last.

"Well, if I lose, so what? It's been a good duo run."

She looked at me with surprise.

"That's really out of character for you to say." She said at last.

I just shrugged. She let out a sigh.

"Just don't do anything stupid, okay?"

I grinned at her.

"Hey, it's me, remember?"

"I know. That's what scares me."

 _Several Minutes Later_

It was time for the main event; the duel. Heathcliff and I stood across from each other in the arena.

"I'm sorry about this, Kirito." He said as he looked around us. "I didn't realize this would be a big deal. This is crazy."

 _Crazy? Oh, no. It's not like the game's two highest players are dueling or anything!_

I decided to keep that thought to myself.

"Maybe I can get a cut of the tickets?" I asked, trying to sound humorous.

My attempt failed.

"No. But when we're finished, you'll become an official member of the Guild."

 _Jeez, cocky much?_

"I'll consider this your first mission."

I rolled my eyes. Had I mentioned that I hated this guy's attitude? He opened his menu and invited me to a duel. I looked down and for some reason, I hesitated before I accepted. The countdown started and I waited a few seconds before I grabbed both of my blades. I began to slowly draw my blades, as Heathcliff did the same.

As soon as the duel started, I dashed forward. Heathcliff was able to block my first strike with his shield, with no problem. I continued laying down strikes, but he just kept blocking with his sword. Eventually he struck back, and my swords blocked his strike, but I flew back a few feet. He charged forward and I did the same. Before I could even prepare to strike, Heathcliff hit me square in the chest with his shield, knocking the wind out of me.

 _Really, the shield?_

He knocked me back once again and began to charge as I recovered. He got multiple strikes in and pushed me back once again. It was at this point that a thought entered my mind.

 _If I lose this fight, he'll have to let Sachi into the Guild. She would be safe!_

Was I seriously thinking about throwing a duel? Yes, I was. Call me a coward, but if I lost this fight, Sachi would be accepted into the Guild and she would have more protection than ever before.

I had made up my mind. I was going to throw the duel, but I was also going to make it look like I was attempting to win. I activated a sword skill and charged forward. I kept striking at him, but he just blocked with his shield. I flew past him as he sidestepped.

"Your reaction time is very impressive!" Heathcliff commented.

I smirked.

"Yeah, and your defense is impregnable." I said.

The spectators let out an overwhelming amount of cheers. We charged towards each other once again and we both struck, but both of us parried the opponent's blade. We continued dodging each other's strikes and lying down strikes for the next few seconds. And now he was back to blocking with his shield again.

I decided that I didn't want this fight to go on for much longer. Heathcliff finally let up a little and I was able to cut across his cheek, which seemed to surprise him. I saw his HP bar deplete a little. He didn't take kindly to that. I charged my sword skill once again. I continued to strike, only for him to block with his shield once more.

He opened up a little and I saw a chance. However, when I ran towards him, he sidestepped, and it was pretty much over. He struck me in the side, and I fell to the ground, as my HP fell into the yellow zone. It was over. I had lost. A message popped up, declaring Heathcliff as the winner of the duel.

There was an uproar of cheers from the audience. They most likely thought that I didn't stand a chance against Heathcliff. But I had gotten what I wanted. I had thrown the duel. I just sat there with my swords at my sides, pretending to look dumbfounded.

I looked up at Heathcliff, who looked back at me with a stern gaze, I guess? He eventually placed his sword back in his scabbard and turned his back on me. He walked forward, leaving me by myself.

 _October 22_ _nd_ _, 2024 – Fiftieth Floor: Algade_

We all sat in the upstairs room of Agil's shop.

"Uh, don't you guys have any uniforms that aren't so flashy?" I complained as I tugged on my new uniform.

Sachi stood next to me, however, she chose not to wear the colors of the Knights of the Blood Oath. Maybe it was a shy thing?

"Actually, that's one of our less flashy ones." Asuna said with a smile on her face, from her spot sitting on a stool across from me.

I let out a grunt of disapproval. She clapped her hands together with a smile still on her face.

"You look great!"

"Thanks." I said with a sigh as I fell backwards onto the bed behind me.

I moved my hand in front of my eyes as I let out a sigh.

 _Here I was again. I was back in a Guild, despite me not wanting to. But, Sachi had more protection now. So, is it worth it?_

"I'm in a Guild." I muttered to myself.

"I guess this is kind of my fault, isn't it?" Asuna asked.

"How can it be your fault?"

"I was the one who asked you out. If I hadn't of done that, you wouldn't have been able to defeat the Boss and impress the Commander."

"You guys are going out?" Sachi asked.

"Not like that!" Asuna exclaimed, a blush no doubt being on her face.

I just sighed and didn't respond. I sat up and began thinking once more.

"Kirito?" she asked.

I turned to face her.

"I think it's time I tell you why I avoid Guilds so much."

She stared back at me with surprise. Before she could speak however, Sachi spoke.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Kirito?"

I turned to look at Sachi.

"It's time, Sachi." I said with insistence.

I turned back to look at Asuna. She continued to look at me with surprise.

"It was a long time ago, at least a year ago, I think. Up to now, it was the only Guild I've ever been a part of. It was small. Including Sachi and I, I think there were six of us. We called ourselves The Moonlit Black Cats."

I spoke in a hushed whisper, but I knew they could hear me, seeing as the room was so silent.

"As a Guild, they were good. But their levels were all lower than mine. I thought that when I told them my level, that they wouldn't want me around. But I was wrong. Their leader, Keita, asked me to join them to teach them everything I knew, so they could become more experienced."

I took a breath before I continued.

"I ended up joining up with them and I taught them multiple things. There would be times in between seriousness, where I'd see them messing around and having fun and I got accustomed to it. I guess I let my guard down."

I looked on at Sachi and Asuna, both of them giving me nervous glances, while Klein remained silent out of my field of vision. The day they all died flashed into my mind.

"We walked into an anti-crystal zone, the first one I've ever seen. I tried to tell them that we should move on, but they didn't listen to me. They insisted that they were fine with me around, that I could protect them. Well, I couldn't even do that. The room was rigged to spawn in monsters and make teleportation impossible. All of them died and I was just barely able to get Sachi out."

I looked up at Asuna, who looked on with glossy eyes.

"It's my fault that they all died. I couldn't protect them."

"W-What about Keita, their leader?" she asked.

"When I confronted him about it, he committed suicide, after telling me to take care of Sachi."

I turned back to look away from her.

"So, now you know. Now you know why I avoid Guilds. And I can understand if you don't want to be around me anymore. I can see it as a risk to your safety."

It surprised me when Asuna stayed silent. Suddenly, she was on her knees in front of me, resting her elbows on my thighs and looking up at me, while she rested her head in her hands. She looked up at me with a sad smile on her face.

"No one else is going to die, Kirito." She said in a confident tone. "Not me, not Klein and not Sachi. And it wasn't your fault."

"Yeah, it wasn't your fault!" Sachi said as she practically jumped over Asuna and caught me in a hug. "And besides, you saved me! That's what you were able to do!"

Asuna got up and backed up a few inches. I looked over at Klein. He looked back with a serious look on his face.

"Look, man. I get why you didn't tell us. It's reasonable for you to think of it as your greatest failure." He said. "But we're your friends. Don't keep your mouth shut about something like this. You can tell us, we _can_ help you."

I smiled in response as Sachi continued hugging me.

 _October 23_ _rd_ _, 2024 – Fifty Fifth Floor: Grandzam_

Klein, Asuna, Sachi and I were sitting in a lounge area when the man approached us. He was tall and had curly brown hair.

"I gotta train?" I asked with confusion.

"That's right." He said. "You, me and one other guy are gonna form a party. Then, we're all gonna go clear the Dungeon on this floor."

"You're kidding me. I'm one of the most powerful players in the game!" I protested.

He shrugged.

"Sorry, orders are orders." He said.

"Now, hold on, Godfree!" Klein spoke. "Kirito hasn't even been here for a day…"

"I can't do anything about it." He interrupted Klein. "You should you that we can't ignore the rules."

He fixed his gaze on me once again.

"It's my job to take you out into the field and evaluate your skills."

"He's stronger than you!" Asuna protested now. "He's stronger than all of you!"

He disregarded what she said.

"Kid, in thirty minutes, I want you at the Western Gate. Ooh-rah!"

He walked off chuckling as I let out a sigh.

"I suppose I should go get ready, then." I said as I got up.

I began walking, when a voice spoke.

"Kirito."

I turned back to look at Sachi. She had been the only one not to argue with Godfree, probably because of her shyness.

"Just go. Just go get it over with so you can get back." She said.

I grinned in return, before turning and walking away, my grin disappearing after a few seconds.

 _Later_

I was ready, walking towards the Western Gate as Godfree came into view.

"Hey, kid! We're waitin' for ya!" he exclaimed as he pulled our party member into view.

It was the last person in Aincrad that I ever wanted to see: Kuradeel. I actually stopped in hesitation for a second, before I continued in my path. I approached them, as Godfree looked at me and Kuradeel avoided looking at me.

"Are you serious?" I asked, even through my best attempts of not asking about it.

"Yep. Look at it this way, we're all in the same Guild." Godfree said. "So, I thought it was a good time as any for you guys to bury the hatchet."

 _Godfree knew about our history?_

He began chuckling as I looked on awkwardly. Kuradeel stepped forward and I was tempted to step back out of discomfort, but I didn't.

"Uh, about the other day, I apologize for my behavior." He said as he bowed his head. "I was rude to you and I promise it won't happen again."

I just stared at him, finding this hard to believe. Did I trust him? Did I think he was being truthful about this? Absolutely not. I was extremely suspicious of Kuradeel. But of course, I didn't say anything to hint at that.

"Yeah, sure." I replied.

Godfree walked up to me and placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Alright ladies, time to focus." He said. "Today, we'll be checking out how you react to dangerous situations. So, I'm gonna need you to hand over all the Crystals in your storage."

My eyes widened a bit with surprise.

"Even my Teleport Crystals?" I asked as I turned to face him.

"Mmm-Hmm." He nodded.

Kuradeel stepped forward and handed off his Crystals without hesitation. Okay, this worried me. I was really suspicious now. I had a bad feeling welling in the pit of my stomach. Godfree took Kuradeel's crystals and then looked at me, gesturing for me to hand them over. I felt the sudden urge to turn around and run. But of course, I didn't.

"Yeah, okay." I said as I handed him my Crystals.

He retracted his hand.

"Awesome. Now, let's go clear a Dungeon!" he cheered as he pumped his fist into the air.

"Yay." Kuradeel and I glumly mumbled in unison.

 _Later – Fifty Fifth Floor: Dungeon Entrance_

The three of us were walking through a canyon on Floor Fifty Five and we were getting ready to take a break.

"This looks like a great place to take a break." Godfree replied as he turned around to look at us.

Kuradeel and I sat down on a rock formation.

"Chow time, ladies!" he exclaimed as he opened his inventory.

He tossed each of us a bag. I opened it and for a split second, I thought I saw one of Asuna's sandwiches along with a bottle in the bag. I imagined her in front of me, holding the sandwich up in front of me.

"Say "aw"!" she said, as if I was a toddler.

I don't know why I thought like that, but I did. It wasn't one of Asuna's sandwiches. It was just a biscuit. I let out a sigh as I looked down. I reached into the sack and pulled out the bottle. I pulled the cork off of the bottle and began to drink. As I drank from the bottle, I glanced at Kuradeel out of my peripheral, to see that he had a sinister expression on his face.

That freaked me out, but of course I did nothing about it. And that's when all hell broke loose. I began to feel a weird sensation all over my body, as if I was locking up. Across from me, Godfree began to lock and fell off of the rock formation he had been sitting on. I looked at my HP bar as the symbol appeared.

 _We've been poisoned!_

Kuradeel began chuckling as he stood up. And then he began laughing like a madman.

 _I knew it. I knew Kuradeel was up to something! I should have trusted my instincts!_

But there was nothing that I could do now. I just watched as Kuradeel laughed with insanity.

"The hell's going on?" Godfree asked from his place. "You packed the water, Kuradeel. What'd you do? You bastard!"

"The Antidote Crystals." I grunted. "Hurry!"

Godfree struggled to move but managed to pull out an Antidote Crystal. However, Kuradeel leaped over to him and kicked the crystal from his hand.

"Poor, sad, old Godfree." Kuradeel taunted. "I always knew you were a colossal idiot. But this proves your even dumber than I thought!"

He began chuckling again as he pulled his sword from his scabbard.

"Don't do this!" Godfree muttered.

It didn't matter what he said; Kuradeel wasn't stopping. Kuradeel walked over to him and struck him across the back. Kuradeel's cursor turned orange.

"No! Stop it!" Godfree exclaimed.

Again, Kuradeel didn't listen.

"Here's my plan, our party was walking along, when," Kuradeel spoke as he lifted his sword and struck Godfree again. "We were attacked by this gang of criminal players who appeared out of nowhere!"

He struck Godfree once more.

"You both fought hard, but you were killed in battle!"

Once again, he struck Godfree.

"It was just me against all of them! And somehow, I courageously and singlehandedly fought them off!"

He struck Godfree again. I watched in terror as Godfree's HP slipped into the critical red zone. And then, with a crazed yell, Kuradeel sunk his sword into Godfree's back. I could only listen to Godfree's pained screams as Kuradeel continued to push his blade through his back.

Godfree's eyes went wide as his HP bar drained completely. Godfree shattered into thousands of glittering shards. I grunted with shock as I looked on, watching the shards fly away in the wind. I watched as Kuradeel began to catch his breath. Then he looked over his shoulder at me, the same crazed look still in his eyes. I tried my best to move, but I couldn't. My entire body was completely locked up.

"You know," Kuradeel spoke as he stalked closer to me. "I just killed an innocent bystander because of you. How am I going to live with myself?"

 _Who does this guy think he is?_

Right now, I really wanted to wipe that smug look off of his face.

"From here, it looked like you were having a blast doing it." I grunted in response. "Why the hell would a guy like you join The Knights of the Blood Oath? You'd be more at home with one of the criminal Guilds!"

"What an interesting observation." He said as he stopped in his tracks. "You have sharp eyes."

He lowered his sword and swiped open his menu. He then unequipped one of his armguards. He turned his arm and I gasped upon seeing it. It was a Laughing Coffin tattoo.

"You're with Laughing Coffin! The murder Guild!"

He just looked down at me and chuckled.

"That's where I got the skills to paralyze bastards like you." He said. "Uh, where's my head? I better stop talking or the poison will wear off. And we wouldn't want that!"

He approached as he raised his sword again.

"Time to finish you off for good!" he said as he sunk his blade into my forearm.

I let out a gasp of pain. Pain indictors fired in my brain, telling me that I was taking damage. He began moving his sword, further injuring me.

 _The poison's not wearing off!_

I watched as my HP bar began to drop. Kuradeel removed his sword and lifted it up, before stabbing into my right leg.

"How's it feel? Come on, I want to know how it feels, knowing you're about to die like a dog!"

I didn't answer.

"What? Is your tongue paralyzed, too?"

My HP bar slipped into the yellow zone.

 _Was I really going to die here?_

Kuradeel began to chuckle.

"Come on now! It's your last chance to say something! You really are going to die!"

He pulled his sword out of my leg, lifted and stabbed through my stomach. My HP bar quickly dropped into the critical red zone.

 _So, this was it. I was going to die here. I wouldn't be able to protect Sachi anymore. I was going to die._

I shut my eyes as I continued to listen to Kuradeel's crazed chuckles. That's when it happened. I visualized Sachi as my eyes closed, looking down at me. My eyes snapped back open. I grabbed Kuradeel's blade and attempted to pull it out. I wasn't going to die here.

 _Sachi still needed my protection!_

Kuradeel gasped with surprise in response.

"Why do you keep struggling?" he asked. "Are you afraid of dying after all?"

 _No, I just refuse to._

"No, I'm just not ready yet!" I struggled to get the words out.

He began laughing as he put his hand on his face.

"Is that so?" he asked. "That's the way I like it!"

He began to forcefully push down on the sword, making it harder to pull out. My HP bar was now really low. It wouldn't take much more for me to die. I kept attempting to pull out the blade but got nowhere.

"Die! Die! Die!" he exclaimed as he pushed the blade in further.

Then it happened. Out of nowhere, Kuradeel was pushed backwards into the canyon wall, taking his sword with him. Sweat dotted my face as I struggled to comprehend what was happening. Eventually, I saw Asuna standing above me. She turned to face me and took out a Crystal.

"Heal!" she exclaimed, before the Crystal shattered.

My HP bar refilled completely, and I was able to relax a little.

"I made it. I made it in time." Asuna said in a worried tone. "Thank God."

I finally looked up at her.

"I made it." She said, before smiling at me. "I was tracking your position on the map the whole time. And when I saw Godfree disappear, I got worried that something might have happened. And you're alive, right?"

"I'm alive, thanks to you."

Across the canyon, Kuradeel begin to pull himself up, using his sword to help balance himself. She turned to look at him with a glare on her face.

"Hang on." She said. "I'll finish this."

She began to unsheathe her rapier as she walked towards Kuradeel.

"A-A-Asuna, I can explain everything!" he said in a panicked voice as he looked at her. "We were just training when all of a sudden, there was this…"

She didn't allow him to finish, as she cut him across the cheek with her rapier, silencing him. He was sent staggering backwards and gave up trying to explain.

"Damn you!" he exclaimed as he swung his sword at her.

Asuna dodged and began cutting him all over his body with lightning speed. I watched as she continued striking him, quickly draining his HP bar. He screamed out in pain during the whole thing. He dropped his sword and put his hands above his head.

"Okay, I give up! I surrender!" he stuttered as he fell to his knees. "Please don't kill me!"

He fell onto his hands and knees in front of her, as if to beg.

"I'll leave the Guild! You'll never see me again, I promise!"

Asuna leveled the tip of her rapier to Kuradeel's back.

"Please!"

Asuna lifted her rapier, ready to stab through his back, finishing the job.

"I don't want to die!"

Asuna leveled her rapier to Kuradeel's back but stopped.

 _Don't listen to him!_

She backed up a bit. That was a mistake. Kuradeel quickly grabbed his sword, got up and disarmed Asuna.

"The oldest trick in the book!" he exclaimed as he lifted up his sword. "And you fell for it, you bitch!"

Asuna gasped as she watched his sword nearing her face. Somehow, I was able to get up and dash over to them and I used my wrist to block Kuradeel's strike. I lost my hand in the process, but I was still able to block the strike. I heard Asuna fall over from shock behind me. I saw my HP bar deplete because of the limb damage, but I didn't care.

I let out a yell as I activated Embracer, a point-blank Martial Arts Skill as my good hand glowed with yellow fire. I punched through Kuradeel's torso, draining his remaining HP. He dropped his sword and fell against me.

"God damn you." He whispered into my ear. "You murdered me."

His form then shattered around me and I fell onto my knees. I heard Asuna walk up to me.

"I'm sorry." I heard her say as she fell to her knees behind me. "This was all my fault, wasn't it?"

I perked up.

 _How could it be her fault?_

It sounded like she was starting to cry. I turned around to face her.

"Asuna…"

"I'm sorry. But I-I should stay away from you. For your safety."

She was crying. I reached out to her with my good hand and hugged her to my chest.

"Don't leave." I said as I gently tousled her hair. "I would die for you all. Just as you'd protect me, I'd protect you. We need each other. And this isn't your fault. You couldn't have known what was going to happen."

Asuna remained silent for a few seconds. She eventually looked up at me.

"But all I do is put you in danger?"

I shook my head.

"Don't be silly, Asuna. You don't put me in danger. None of this was your fault, you have nothing to be guilty for."

She looked at me for a few seconds, before she smiled. I leaned forward and rested my forehead against hers.

"We're all going to get through this, Asuna." I whispered. "Together."

She nodded, which felt kind of uncomfortable with me resting my head against hers.

 _Five Minutes Later_

Asuna and I walked out of the canyon, with my hand finally grown back. We were walking towards the nearest Teleport Gate, when suddenly, I felt a chill go down my spine. Out of instinct, I turned around. Far in the distance, I saw someone standing above in the rocks of the upper canyon. However, he was so high up that it was impossible to make out any facial features.

"Hey, what the hell?!" I exclaimed as I pointed up to him.

"What?" Asuna asked as she began to turn around. "What is it, Kirito?"

Coincidentally, just as Asuna turned around the figure disappeared behind a rock formation.

"I just saw someone up there!" I said, still pointing.

Asuna looked on, but the figure never revealed itself again.

"Are you feeling okay, Kirito?" she asked.

I looked at her.

"There isn't anybody up there."

"But I… But I…"

She took my forearm in her hand.

"Come on." She said as she gently dragged me along. "Let's just get out of here."

 _Later That Night – Sixty First Floor: Selmburg_

The four of us sat at the dinner table in Asuna's house. Once we got back to Headquarters and we told the others about what happened, we all agreed to take the rest of the day off. As I took a drink of my tea, Klein spoke.

"We should go away for a while."

I looked at him with confusion as I put my cup down on the small plate.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"We should take some time off! We should move down to one of the lower levels, a relaxing spot and just stay there for a while!"

I thought about it for a minute.

"You know what, you're right. After today, I think we all need some R&R."

"Well, of course you'd agree with me! You're the one who was attacked!"

"Thanks for reminding me."

I looked down at the table and I began to think. Suddenly, a thought flashed through my mind and I looked back up.

"In the southwest region of Floor Twenty Two, there's this tiny little village by a lake and the forest. We could all buy a house there and move down there together. And just what Klein said, take some time off."

Asuna nodded.

"I agree. I feel like if, especially now, if we go back to the front lines, something bad will happen. Or maybe I'm just tired of fighting."

"I understand. I think that's why we all need a bit of a break."

"So, what?" Klein asked. "We all go in and ask for time off tomorrow?"

"Exactly." I replied in return.

There was silence now. I turned to Asuna.

"You could sell this place, for money if you want." I said.

"Now, hey, wait a minute! What do you…"

"Listen, this is my idea. We find a suitable house and we split the cost between the four of us. Asuna can sell her house here if she needs money. Sound fair?"

No one said a word and they all nodded after a few seconds. I leaned back in my chair, relaxing a little bit.

"Okay, good. Then let's relax for the rest of the night. And tomorrow we go on break!"

I didn't get any argument.

 _Author's Note:_

* Okay, that's the chapter for today. I can understand that some people may be a little unhappy at this point, you know, that Kirito and Asuna aren't together? But don't worry. Just because it didn't happen in this chapter doesn't mean that it won't happen. I didn't want them to get together yet, because it seems too early for me.

* In fact, in the Anime I thought it was too early for them to get together. Maybe I'm the only one who sees it like that and if I am, I don't know why I think that. I'm also sorry that I didn't recreate a couple of key scenes from the Anime here. Since Kirito and Asuna aren't together yet, it didn't make sense to adapt said scenes.

* Anyway, that's it for this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed. Anyway, I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _(Chapter 9): This was a fantastic read well done._

Thanks, Tilty. I'm glad you found it enjoyable. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito and friends are enjoying their time away from the front lines. However, a new arrival soon takes them back all the way to the beginning.


	11. Chapter 11: The Girl of Morning Dew

Chapter 11: The Girl of Morning Dew

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Eleven!

* Nothing much I can say here, although there will be a few moments that didn't happen in the Anime. So, do with that what you will. Anyway, with that said, let's get right down into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _October 24_ _th_ _, 2024 – Fifty Fifth Floor: Grandzam_

Klein, Asuna, Sachi and I were at the HQ of The Knights of the Blood Oath, explaining what had happened yesterday and asked for our temporary leave.

"I understand the situation." Heathcliff replied. "Now, I'll just have to explain it to the rest of the Guild."

"Also," I said. "We'd like a temporary absence from the Guild. To recuperate after the Kuradeel situation."

"Really? Why?"

Asuna answered for me.

"We're starting to question the current state of the Guild. And we need time to think."

Heathcliff dipped his head and sighed.

"Very well."

We all smiled at each other.

"However, I'm positive you won't stay away from the battlefield for long."

None of us made a response.

 _October 25_ _th_ _, 2024 – Twenty Second Floor_

We had arrived at the cabin, which we had bought that same day. It was a nice two floor cabin, with enough room for the four of us. There was also a sauna in the cabin and there was a small hot spring nearby.

"Wow!" Asuna exclaimed as she ran out to the balcony. "This view is amazing!"

"I know, right?" Klein asked as he and Sachi walked out onto the balcony as well.

I was standing right behind Asuna, just sort of in my own little world. Just then, Klein moved in front of me.

"Hey, Kirito, you mind moving for a second?" he asked.

I looked up from my daze.

"What? Oh, yeah, sure."

I backed up a little for Klein. Then, he did something that shocked me. He put his hand on Asuna's butt and then quickly backed up again. Asuna flinched and then turned around and looked at me. Her face reddened and I knew where this was going.

 _Crap._

Asuna ran forward and slapped me across the face. I fell over onto my back.

 _Nice one, Klein._

 _October 26_ _th_ _, 2024 – Twenty Second Floor_

The next morning, I was woken up by something. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. Once I got used to the amount of light in the room, I looked over at Asuna, who was sitting up in her bed, reading the Aincrad newspaper. She looked in my direction as I sat up.

"Good morning." She said.

I murmured my greeting in return. She turned back to reading the "paper". I looked over to Klein's bed across the room from mine, to see that he was still asleep. When I looked over at Sachi's bed, I saw that she was sitting up with her knees drawn to her chest.

"You guys didn't hear what I just said, did you?" she asked.

Asuna looked up.

"No. What?" she asked.

Sachi looked down at her feet.

"Mmm, okay."

I was confused. What had Sachi said? I looked over at Asuna and saw that she was looking at me. I just shrugged. She looked away from me and went back to reading the paper. I let out a sigh as I fell back into my bed, lying my head on my pillow.

 _Later That Day – Twenty Second Floor_

Once everyone had gotten up and we had eaten breakfast, we all agreed on taking a walk around the forest of Floor Twenty Two.

"So, how much time do we have off again?" Sachi asked.

"A couple weeks." Asuna said. "Although the Commander is allowed to call us back at any time he wishes."

"What?" Klein asked. "Why?"

All three of us looked at him.

"Because, we're not slackers." Asuna replied.

"Oh, come on! I'm not a slacker! I just enjoy prolonged relaxation!"

"Your definition of "long term relaxation" would be the same as slacking off." I joked.

He let out a huff as he went silent. As we continued walking, I got the urge to do something risky. So, I began to trail behind Asuna. I got into a running start and dove underneath her legs, as I picked her up onto my shoulders.

"Kirito, what the hell?!" she exclaimed as she struggled to avoid falling off my shoulders.

"Just go with it, Asuna! What's the matter, have you never had a piggyback ride before?"

I took off running down the wooden path, holding her legs to prevent her from falling. Eventually her screams of anger turned to joyful laughter, so I relished in the fact that she wasn't angry anymore. I hadn't even realized how far we had gone before Klein called out.

"Hey, wait for us!"

As I ran with Asuna on my shoulders, she spoke.

"Wow, you can already see the lake from here!"

"No, _you_ can see the lake. I can't." I muttered in response.

"Well, fine. If you want, you can ride on my shoulders once we turn around and head back to the cabin."

"I appreciate the gesture, but I doubt you have the strength stat to do it."

Asuna was silent for a few moments. She slapped my head.

"Okay, I guess I kinda deserved that."

"Yeah, you kinda did."

Once we were maybe five minutes down the wooden path, Asuna had me stop underneath a tree. I had no idea why, but for some reason, she wanted to leaf through the branches. Just then, a bug of some sort scared her, causing her to wobble a little bit.

"Wow, it almost went up my nose!"

She then went silent for a few moments. I turned my head to my left and saw a group of fishermen in the distance.

"Great, now we have people looking at us." I muttered.

"Our own audience." Asuna whispered to me. "Kirito, they're waving at us. Wave back!"

"Sorry, not gonna happen. I'm not going to embarrass myself."

"You already embarrassed yourself when you forcefully gave me a piggyback ride."

I was trying to come up with a witty comeback, when I heard Klein and Sachi catch up to us.

"Oh, what have we here? An audience?" Klein asked. "Well, I guess that's just something you'll have to deal with regarding young love."

My face felt like it was on fire.

 _Did Klein seriously just say that? Please don't tell me that Sachi told that specific "thing" to Klein?_

Asuna let out a scream as she fell from my shoulders and onto the wooden path.

"I guess that's what you get for not hanging on tight." I muttered,

"Idiot!" she exclaimed as she kicked the back of my leg.

Once she got up, she asked me to hunch down.

"Um, why?" I asked.

"Just do it."

I sighed and hunched down, then was surprised when Asuna got back on my shoulders.

"Um, okay." I said with surprise as I stood back up.

"Forward!" Asuna exclaimed as she pointed. "North, northeast!"

I rolled my eyes, but began running forward, nonetheless. Asuna gasped with surprise as she held on.

"Not so fast! We're not in a hurry!"

I didn't listen, but I kept running, as Asuna's laughter filled my ears. I could only assume that Klein and Sachi were running behind us, struggling to keep up. After a while of running, we all eventually found ourselves in a forest.

"So, I heard this weird rumor in the village yesterday." I spoke, breaking the silence. "That if you go deep enough into the forest, you'll see… them."

Asuna let out a grunt.

"See what?"

A small smile appeared on my face. I stopped in my tracks.

"Ghosts." I whispered just loud enough for her to hear.

Asuna chuckled.

"Y-You mean like, those in-game astral-type monsters, right?"

"No, not those. Real ghosts."

"There's no such thing as ghosts!" Klein called from behind us.

I turned around to face him, with Asuna still on my shoulders.

"Shut up, you little insect!" I exclaimed.

He grinned back at me with a sheepish look on his face.

"Little insect?" Asuna asked. "Is that really the best you could come up with?"

"Oh, shut up." I muttered.

"Whatever, just go back to your story."

I sighed before I continued.

"They say the tortured souls of the monsters hunted here, come back to wander the forest at night."

Sachi let out a gasp of fright, before hiding behind Klein. I let out a chuckle as I saw that. Klein looked at her over his shoulder.

"Hey, come on, it's broad daylight!" he said. "And besides, there's no such thing as ghosts!"

Sachi poked her head out from behind him.

"Yeah, but does the ghost know that?" she asked.

I started laughing a bit after she said that.

"You're an awful liar, Kirito." Asuna finally said.

"Eh, had to try." I said.

Just then, Asuna heard a noise.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Ha, ha. Nice try." I muttered.

"No, seriously! What was that?!"

"What was what?"

"That sound!"

" _What_ sound?!"

Asuna didn't speak again this time. I rolled my eyes and kept walking.

"We're almost there, anyway." I said.

"The place the rumor mentions?" she asked, even though she didn't believe me.

"About a week ago, a carpenter hiked into the forest to get some wood for a project. He stayed so long, that before he knew it, it was night. As he walked along, he caught a glimpse of something white, standing by a tree."

She gasped with fright, which surprised me.

"Was it a monster, or something else?" I continued. "The white figure slowly approached a tree.

"Hey, look!" she said as she grabbed the top of my head.

"Huh?" I asked as I looked in the direction of her pointer finger.

I didn't see anything. As soon as I looked away, she began freaking out again.

"I wanna get down!" she exclaimed. "I wanna get down!"

She struggled to get off of my shoulders and ended up toppling over backwards onto the ground, taking me with her. Once I hit the ground, I let out a grunt of pain.

"What's wrong with you?" I asked.

Once I got up, she hid behind me.

"I-It's over there!" she said with fright.

"What are you talking about?"

Asuna pointed over my shoulder, so I looked in the direction that she was pointing. This time, however, I saw a little girl in a white dress with black hair, standing by a tree.

"You gotta be kidding." I muttered to myself.

Asuna's grip on my shoulders tightened as I began to feel frightened myself. I didn't know how Klein and Sachi were reacting, I couldn't see their expressions, nor did I hear them say anything. Suddenly, the girl looked in our direction. Asuna ducked down behind me as I finally heard Sachi squeal with fright. And then, the strangest thing happened. The girl fell over. My eyes filled with confusion as I looked on.

"Hold on." I said with confusion as I ran over to her.

"Kirito!" Sachi cried. "Be careful!"

I reached the little girl and knelt down. I felt her face, feeling actual skin.

"It's not a ghost." I whispered to myself.

"What?" Klein called out.

"She's not a ghost!" I called back, turning to face them. "She's a real girl!"

I gently put my hands on the girl and slowly lifted her up from the ground as my friends reached me.

"She's another player?" Asuna asked.

"I don't…" I tried to say something, but my voice trailed off as I stared down at the girl with concern.

"What's she doing all the way out here?" Sachi asked, seemingly getting over her fright.

"I don't know." I said with confusion.

"No cursor." Klein whispered, barely enough for me to hear.

I turned to look at him.

"What?" I asked.

"She hasn't got a cursor." He said in a clearer tone of voice.

I looked back at the girl and saw that he was right. She really didn't have a cursor.

"Maybe it's some kind of bug?" Asuna suggested.

"Yeah, probably." Klein agreed.

"What's a little girl like her doing in SAO?" Sachi asked.

I tried to think about what the girl was doing here, but I couldn't come up with a theory that made sense.

"I guess we'll find out when she wakes up." I said at last.

"Huh?" Klein asked.

I looked back at him.

"We can't just leave her out here all by herself!" I said.

Klein looked back at me, before he nodded with a grunt.

"He's right." Asuna said.

"Of course, he is."

"Well, it's settled then. Let's take her back to the cabin with us."

I stood up, scooping the girl up into my arms as I did. I turned to look at the three of them.

"Come on, let's get her laid down into a comfy bed. Lying down on the ground isn't going to do her any good."

They nodded with agreement. And so, we all started back towards the cabin.

"Look, we only have four beds and I don't want to leave her on the couch." I said as I walked. "So, if she hasn't woken up by tonight, she can take my bed and I'll sleep on the couch."

"There's no need for that, Kirito." Asuna said. "My bed's big enough to share with her."

"That's fine."

"It's no problem."

"Alright, you win."

Asuna went silent for a second.

"And once she wakes up, we'll find out what we can." She spoke again. "And hopefully return her to her parents.

I nodded.

"Sounds like a plan." I agreed.

 _Later That Evening_

We were all back at the cabin and the little girl still hadn't woken up. We all sat on our beds, however, seeing as the girl was taking up Asuna's bed, she sat next to me on my bed. Sachi sat on her bed in silence, as Klein sat on his, reading the paper.

"Well, one thing's for sure." I said, breaking the silence. "She's not an NPC. The system wouldn't have let us carry her in here if she had been."

Asuna nodded next to me.

"Yeah, you're right."

"If she were an NPC, she would have given off a harassment warning." Sachi chimed in.

"And she's not a quest giver, either." I added.

Klein had stayed relatively silent in the conversation, so I looked over in his direction.

"Klein, do you have something to add?" I asked.

He looked up from his paper.

"Sorry, what did you say?" he asked. "I wasn't listening."

I smirked as I turned away from him.

 _Just as I thought._

"You're right though." Asuna spoke. "If she was a quest giver, our quest logs would have been updated the second you began interacting with her."

I nodded in agreement.

"She has to be a player." I decided. "And she's probably been out there a while, wondering around lost. That's the most likely scenario."

"Yeah, sure. But why was she all the way out there? What was she doing?" Sachi asked.

I shrugged.

"Your guess is as good as mine." I replied. "But she has to have a parent or guardian out there, somewhere. Doesn't she? I mean, she can't be all by herself in here."

"She had to have logged in with someone from her family." She agreed.

"I hope they're safe." Asuna chimed in.

"Me, too." I whispered.

After several minutes of silence, Asuna turned to me.

"Hey, do you think she'll wake up?"

I nodded.

"Yeah. If her body hasn't disappeared, that means signals are still being transmitted to and from her NerveGear. She's just in some kind of sleep mode. I'm sure she'll wake up soon. And the sooner, the better."

"Yeah." Asuna mumbled in agreement a few seconds later.

About half an hour passed without any change and I finally let out a yawn. I looked over at Asuna.

"Hey, is it alright if I ask you to go sit somewhere else?" I asked. "I think I'm going to turn in for the night."

She looked back at me and eventually nodded.

"Okay." She said as she stood up from my bed.

She went over to sit with Sachi, and I pulled the covers back, lying down.

"You guys can talk." I said as I pulled the covers up. "You know, just try to keep it down."

"We will." Sachi said.

I laid my head back and put my arm underneath my pillow. Before I knew it, sleep came to me.

 _The Next Morning_

Early the next morning, I was woken up by Asuna calling out to us to wake up. I yawned as I sat up in my bed.

"Good morning to you, too." I said as I stretched. "What is it?"

"Hurry! Get over here, you guys!"

I sighed as I got out of bed and moved over to her bed. It surprised me when I saw the little girl with her eyes open, looking up at us. She had stunning, bright black eyes.

"She finally woke up?" Klein asked.

Asuna flashed him a deadly look for some reason. She looked back at the little girl and helped her sit up.

"Thank goodness you're awake!" she said. "Do you remember what happened to you?"

The little girl looked down at the covers and eventually shook her head no, grunting as she did so.

"Okay…" Sachi spoke with concern.

"Well…" I tried to speak, only to get interrupted by Asuna.

"What about your name? Can you tell us your name?"

It took a second or two for the girl to speak.

"M-My name is… I think my name is… I think…" she spoke, noticeably struggling. "Uh, you? You-ee?"

She looked up at us.

"That's it. Yui."

"That's a cute name!" Asuna spoke as she closed her eyes. "Nice to meet you. My name's Asuna."

She turned to look at the three of us.

"And this is Kirito, Klein and Sachi."

"Sup?" Klein spoke first.

Asuna shot him a glance of disapproval.

"Hi." I said, trying to speak in a reassuring tone.

"Hi, nice to meet you!" Sachi replied in a friendly tone.

"A-Auna? Kito?" she asked, mispronouncing our names. "Kine? Sashi?"

We all chuckled except for Asuna.

"It's actually, Sachi. Don't make a "shh" sound." She replied. "Make a "chuh" sound."

Asuna spoke once more.

"Yui, try to remember. What were you doing out in the forest? And do you remember where your mom and dad are now?"

Yui looked back down at the covers.

"Um, I-I don't know."

I had to admit, the way she spoke tugged at my heartstrings.

"I can't remember anything."

"Oh, no." Asuna whispered.

"That's awful!" Sachi added.

"Well, you're awake." Klein replied. "I mean, that's one thing."

I nodded as I sat down on the bed with Asuna and Yui.

 _He had a point._

"Can I call you Yui?" I asked.

She looked over at me.

"Mmm-hmm." She mumbled.

"Okay." I said. "Then you can call me Kirito. Can you say "Kirito"?"

"Kito?" she mispronounced my name again.

"It's Kirito." I explained. "Ki-ri-to. Now, you try."

She looked up at me.

"Kito." She repeated herself.

I chuckled and lightly tousled Yui's hair.

"That's okay. Maybe it's a little hard. How about you call me whatever's easiest for you?"

Yui looked away from me, as if she was thinking. After a while, she looked back at me and spoke. And what she said surprised me.

"Daddy."

My eyes went wide with shock.

"Me?" I asked as I pointed at myself.

Yui looked at Asuna without a word.

"Auna is Mommy." She said.

Before Asuna or I could respond, Klein began to laugh.

"She thinks that Kirito is her Dad and that Asuna is her Mom?" he asked, still laughing. "Oh, that's rich!"

Asuna and I both looked at Klein with anger and embarrassment. He continued laughing, as I put my hand for him to see.

"What?" he asked as he stopped laughing. "What does that mean?"

I put one of my fingers down, leaving only four left up. He still didn't react, so I put another finger, leaving only three left.

"Three." I said.

Suddenly, he seemed to get it as he went a little pale and his cheeks began to turn light red. He lightly chuckled.

"You know what? If the happily married couple doesn't mind, I'm gonna step out."

He got up to leave, but as he said that, Asuna lost it. She got up and ran after him.

"Get back here, you dummy!" she exclaimed as Klein ran out of the room.

I got up to go after Asuna before she did something hasty. I managed to catch her just before she could get out of the door, by taking her hand in mine. She turned to look at me, her cheeks bright red. I was blushing too, but I was trying my best not to let my nervousness and awkwardness get to me.

"It's alright." I said. "Just ignore him."

She let out a breath and nodded, as the color on her cheeks died down a little.

"You're right." She said. "Sorry."

We moved back to Yui. Yui was looking at us with a look that tugged at my heartstrings just as much as the sad tone she spoke in. Eventually, Asuna did her best to smile and I followed her example.

"Okay, I'm Mommy." She said. "That works."

A happy look finally came onto Yui's face as she closed her eyes.

"Mommy!" she said as she jumped up and hugged Asuna. "Mommy!"

I couldn't help but smile up at Asuna as she stood up, bringing Yui with her.

"You must be hungry!" Asuna said. "Let's eat!"

"Okay!"

 _Later_

As we sat at the table beginning to eat breakfast, I read the Aincrad Newspaper, trying to find any posts about missing children. I picked up my sandwich with one hand and took a bite out of it as I continued reading.

"Kirito." Asuna spoke.

I ignored her as I continued reading the paper.

"Kirito." She repeated herself.

I ignored her once more, as I swallowed my bite of sandwich.

"Kirito!" Asuna barked one last time.

"Huh?" I asked as I looked over to her.

She smiled back at me.

"Hey, um, what did we say about reading at the dinner table?"

I just looked at her with confusion.

"Um, what about it?"

She leaned across the table.

"You shouldn't be reading at the table," she whispered to me. "You're setting a bad example for our child."

" _Our child"? She's really milking this, isn't she? Well, she's just trying to play the role correctly, I guess. I can't blame her._

"Yeah, "Daddy"!" Klein exclaimed. "So, put the paper away!"

I looked over at him, as I began to growl a bit.

"Sorry." He said as he quickly looked at Sachi. "Hey, Sachi. Do you think Kiri-Dude and Asuna will make good parents?"

Sachi began to giggle and I couldn't take it anymore. I picked up my fork and brought it down on Klein's hand.

"Ow, ow, ow!" he exclaimed. "Okay, I'll shut up about it! God, why do we have silverware anyway?"

"Proper kitchen etiquette!" Sachi exclaimed in a sing-songy tone.

I let out a sigh.

 _How did this happen?_

"What's the matter, Yui?" Asuna asked.

I looked over at the two, to see Yui staring at my sandwich.

"I want the same one that Daddy has!" she replied.

" _Awww_!" Klein and Sachi cooed in unison.

I tried my best to ignore them.

"I dunno Yui, this is really spicy." I said in a serious tone.

She continued to look at me with a determined look, eventually pointing at her mouth and opening it as she did.

"Okay." I said. "If you really think that you can handle it, I won't stop you. You only live once, right?"

I reached down for one of my sandwiches and handed one to her.

"Kirito, let's not be hasty!" Asuna exclaimed.

I looked over at her.

"Hey, there's only one way to know if she likes it or not." I said. "Go ahead, Yui."

Asuna looked on with a nervous look on her face as Yui bit into the sandwich. She chewed for several seconds, before swallowing it, barely breaking a sweat.

"I like it!" she replied.

"Wow, you got an iron stomach, Yui!" Klein exclaimed.

"Yeah!" I agreed as I tousled her hair. "We can do a full course of spicy food tonight, if you want!"

"Mmm-Hmm!" she grunted with enthusiasm.

Asuna didn't take kindly to that.

"Let's not get carried away!" she exclaimed. "I won't be cooking anything nuclear!"

I turned back to Yui.

"You heard the lady." I said.

"You heard the lady?" Yui repeated what I had said.

Everyone at the table except for Asuna herself began to laugh.

 _Later_

Once breakfast was finished, I went back to reading the paper and Asuna moved Yui to the couch, as she had fallen asleep again. Asuna eventually came back and sat down at the table.

"So, what do you guys think?" she asked.

Klein spoke first.

"She's cute."

Asuna looked over at him.

"Not about the girl, idiot!" she said. "About the situation!"

Klein shrunk back in his seat without another word. I looked at Asuna as I thought to myself.

 _Geez, Asuna can be really intimidating sometimes._

Asuna caught my gaze and looked over at me.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing." I said as I looked away.

"Seriously, guys. What do you think of our situation?"

I shrugged.

"It seems like she doesn't have any memories." Sachi replied.

I nodded in agreement.

"No memories whatsoever." I said. "It's really weird."

Asuna had a sad look on her face.

"I know." She said. "It's like she's a baby again."

Asuna began to rub her eyes, as if she were going to cry. I looked down at the table, unsure of what to do or what to say.

"I'm sorry." She said at last. "I just don't know what to do."

"That puts us in the same boat." Klein said.

I turned to look at him.

"Dude, you never know what to do." I said.

He looked back at me with a sheepish look. I eventually looked back at Asuna. I reached out to her and took her hand in mine. She looked up at me with a surprised look in her eyes.

"Don't worry." I said in a reassuring tone. "Everything will be fine. We'll figure something out."

She smiled back at me with thanks.

"We should take care of her!" Sachi exclaimed.

We both looked over at her, as did Klein.

"I mean, at least until she gets her memory back!" she said in a shy tone.

"Yeah, sure but that's causes a dilemma." I said.

Sachi looked back at me with a confused gaze.

"We have to get back to the frontlines at some point to continue helping clear the game!" I said.

Sachi looked down.

"Besides, the longer we're out here, the longer she has to wait to be free again!"

Klein and Sachi nodded. The image of Commander Heathcliff flashed into my mind.

"For now, we'll just have to do what we can." Asuna said.

I nodded.

"Judging from the gear that she had in her storage, she couldn't have been out in the field for very long." I replied. "We should check the Town of Beginnings! Maybe there we can find out if she has family!"

"Okay, you're right." Asuna replied.

I stood up from the table.

"So, it's settled then." I said. "When Yui wakes up, we all go to the Town of Beginnings!"

"Kirito?" Klein asked.

I turned my head to him.

"From what I heard, the Town of Beginnings is where the Army is based out of now." He said. "We should be well equipped and ready for anything when we go."

"He's right." Asuna said.

I looked at her and she nodded at me. I eventually looked back at Klein.

"Okay." I said. "Everyone, get ready for when Yui wakes up."

 _October 31_ _st_ _, 2024 – First Floor: Town of Beginnings_

As it would happen, we didn't go to the Town of Beginnings that day. We all put it to a vote and decided that we should just stay in for the day and go at another time. So, a couple days passed of having Yui with us at the cabin and we finally decided to venture down there.

We all emerged from a teleport gate, out onto the plaza. We started walking out into the empty plaza.

"It's been forever since I've been here." I muttered as I carried Yui on my shoulders.

"Me, too." Asuna agreed.

"Yeah, Kirito! There are some good memories here!" Klein exclaimed. "This is where we met, remember?"

A small smile crossed my face, as my mind flashed back to an earlier time, with me running through an alleyway, before quickly being stopped and introduced to Klein.

"Well, no duh!" Asuna said as she looked over at him. "That's where most players met for the first time!"

He just chuckled.

"Good memories." He said.

"Yeah." I agreed, as I looked up at the sky. "Good memories."

As I looked up at the sky, memories of the nightmare that started on the first day flashed through my mind. Red liquid dripping from the cracks in the ceiling, the "System Announcement" label and the appearance of Akihiko Kayaba himself.

"And other not so great memories." I whispered, as the images passed.

I looked down at the ground, as I suddenly felt not as upbeat as I had seconds ago. I felt someone take my hand.

"Huh?" I grunted as I looked over at Sachi.

She smiled at me with reassurance as she held my hand.

"Come on, Kirito. Let's go!" she said.

I nodded back at her as Asuna began to walk ahead of us.

"What do you think, Yui?" she asked. "Do any of these buildings look familiar?"

I felt Yui turn on my shoulders.

"Mmm, I don't know." She said at last.

She sighed with defeat.

"Don't get down about it." I said. "The Town of Beginnings is a really big place."

I looked back at Asuna.

"Well, how about it, Asuna? Let's say we start at the Central Market?"

She nodded and without any other words, we all started off. After several minutes of walking, we arrived in the Market. Once again, I was bombarded by flashbacks. On the very first day, the Central Market was packed with other players and NPCs running shops. Today, however, it was a ghost town, completely void of life. It was just us five.

"Hey, Kirito?" Sachi asked.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Do you know how many players are here?"

"Yeah, like right now? In the town?" Asuna chimed in.

I thought to myself for a moment.

"Hmm, good question." I replied. "The last time I checked, there were about six thousand players left alive in SAO. And thirty percent of those people, including the Army, live in the Town of Beginnings. So, maybe a bit less than two thousand?"

"Well, doesn't it seem, I don't know, a little dead around here?" Sachi asked.

"Yeah, you're right." I said as I came to a stop.

My three friends came to a stop as well. They all seemed to be thinking, just like I was. Then, our thoughts were interrupted by a cry coming not too far away from us.

"Leave those children alone!"

We all snapped out of our thoughts and looked at each other.

"Look, it's that day-care bitch!" I heard a man's voice exclaim.

We all had different looks on our faces. I was concerned, Asuna looked angry, Sachi looked nervous and Klein had kept a straight face.

"We've been waiting for you!" another man's voice exclaimed.

Asuna and I looked at each other. We both seemed to think the same thing as we nodded in unison. We then took off running in the direction of the voices.

"Hey, wait for us!" Klein exclaimed.

I turned my head to look back at them as they tried to follow us.

"Try to keep up!" I exclaimed, before looking ahead of myself once more.

"Leave them alone and let them go!" I heard the lady's voice once again.

"You make it sound like we're doing something illegal, baby cakes." I barely heard a man's voice up ahead. "We're just teaching them how things work around here, making sure they pay their way. It's all part of the Army's job, Ma'am."

"That's right." I heard another man speak. "Everyone's got to pay taxes around here!"

I heard laughter from up ahead, which only made me run faster.

"Ginn, Cain, Mina!" I heard the lady's voice once more. "Are you okay?"

"Help, Miss Sasha!" I heard a little girl's voice. "Please! Save us!"

"They just want your money!" Miss Sasha exclaimed. "So, give it to them and it'll be okay!"

"We tried, Teach!" a boy exclaimed. "But they said it's not good enough!"

"You know, you deadbeats owe us a hell of a lot in back taxes." A man's voice said.

"You need to drop all of the equipment you have, right there. Including your armor!" one of the men said.

He said something else, but I couldn't tell what it was.

"No way!" Miss Sasha exclaimed. "Let me through, or else! Stand aside!"

Asuna and I finally rounded the corner and were able to see what was happening. A few Army guys were keeping a lady, I assumed it was Miss Sasha, from getting to three children. One of the Army guys looked surprised as we kept running towards them. Asuna and I effortlessly jumped over their shoulders, even with me carrying Yui. They all turned around to look at us with shock. Asuna departed from me to tend to the three children.

"You guys are going to be okay now." She said in a reassuring tone as she bent down to look at them. "Get your stuff."

"O-Okay." One of the boys replied.

Miss Sasha, the lady with brown hair and green eyes gasped as she saw this. She was also wearing a mostly blue gown, if it mattered. She also had a small dagger strapped to her hip. The Army guys recovered from their shock.

"What the…? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa." One of them spoke. "Hey, who the hell are you?!"

"This is Army business, so get the hell out of our way!" another one said.

"Hold on." One of them spoke as they stepped forward. "I got this."

He stopped once he reached me.

"I guess you all are new in town, yeah?" he asked. "Cause we're with the Liberation Army and you do not mess with us!"

The man pulled his sword out to show us he was being serious. The children behind me gasped with fright.

"Kirito, take care of Yui." Asuna spoke as she walked past me.

As she walked forwards, I saw Klein and Sachi round the turn into the alley up ahead.

"Uh-huh." I said.

She equipped her rapier and unsheathed it as she continued forward. The man in front of her chuckled without fear, fully confident. He didn't know who he was dealing with.

"What are you gonna do, little girl?" the man asked as Asuna came to a stop.

Without warning, she activated her sword skill and struck him, knocking him off of his feet. She activated her sword skill and struck him again, this time sending him somersaulting backwards. Everyone was shocked, even the Army soldiers themselves. Asuna looked down at the man she had attacked.

"Oh, don't worry. It's a Safe Zone." She reassured him. "Your HP won't deplete no matter what I do. It's just the feeling of getting knocked off your feet. Even so, a fight with me is still going to scare the hell out of you."

The man didn't budge. Asuna lifted her blade and that's when he gave up. He turned around in a hurry and hurried over to his friends.

"No, don't! Agh!" he exclaimed, as Asuna struck him again despite his protests, sending him flying.

He struggled to get up once he landed. He looked up at his friends.

"Don't you just stand there, you assholes!" he exclaimed. "Do something!"

It looked like that the rest of the Army squadron would attack, however Asuna whipped her blade and that seemed to be enough to get the Army to turn and run, screaming as they ran down the alley. They ran past Sachi and Klein, not even regarding them. Asuna sheathed her rapier once more. She let out a sigh. She turned back to look at us. The children looked unsure, which made her doubt what she had just done. But their spirits quickly lifted.

"Awesome!" one of the kids replied as he smiled. "That was so awesome!"

The other two children followed suit as they approached Asuna.

"Wow, I've never seen anything like that before!"

"You are so cool!"

Miss Sasha approached her from behind.

"Thank you for helping us out!" she exclaimed, as she bowed to Asuna.

The children continued to cheer, as Asuna chuckled and closed her eyes, putting her hand on the back of her head.

"You see that?" I asked Yui. "Mom's crazy strong, isn't she?"

Yui just grunted with confusion, so I turned my head to look at her with concern. She began to look around once more. Suddenly, Yui spoke.

"Their hearts…" she said as she reached up to the sky with one hand. "Everyone's hearts are…"

"Yui?" I asked with concern.

Asuna must have noticed that Yui was acting odd, because she spoke next.

"What's wrong, Yui?" she called out.

"Everyone's hearts…" Yui spoke once more.

"Yui, what's the matter?" I asked with even more worry in my voice. "Yui?"

Asuna hurriedly began to walk over to us.

"Yui, did you remember something?" Asuna asked once she reached us.

Yui put both of her hands on my shoulders as she rested her head against my neck.

"I… I… I was never here… in this place." She said. "I was always alone… in the dark!"

I could feel Yui's hands tremble as she rested them on my shoulders. Asuna gasped with pain. And then it happened. Yui began to freak out. The sound of static filled the air as she fell from my shoulders. In fact, my vision was almost blurry, staticky. Asuna put her hands over her ears, but I couldn't do that, as I was trying to keep Yui on my shoulders. It wasn't good enough.

"Yui!" Asuna and I exclaimed in unison as she fell from my shoulders.

Luckily, Asuna was able to run over and catch her before she hit the ground. The static noises came to a stop now.

"Mommy, I'm scared!" Yui exclaimed as she tightly hugged Asuna. "Mommy!"

I stared down at them with slight fear in my eyes.

"My God, Yui…" I said.

Yui looked up at me and then suddenly she passed out in Asuna's arms. Asuna looked down at Yui.

"What was that?" she asked.

I didn't have an answer. Believe me, I wish I did. All I could do was speculate for now.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for the chapter! I'm sorry I was inactive for so long, I've been dealing with a new semester of school and I've just had a few inconveniences that have left me busier than I would have hoped. I'll try not to be inactive for so long again!

* Anyway, what did you guys think of this chapter? Did you guys like how Klein and Sachi occasionally provided comic relief? My biggest question is that did the story of Yui without Kirito and Asuna being married successful? Was it just as good? Or did it fail? Please let me know, because this was one of the chapters that I was sort of hesitant about. I didn't know if I could nail it like I seem to be doing with the other chapters.

* As there are no new reviews, there will not be a review responses section here. I think that's going to do it for this chapter. That being said, I'm going to go, though. So have a great day and bye.

Next Chapter: Yulier, the Liberation Army's second in command, askes Kirito and friends to save a friend – and her guild.


	12. Chapter 12: Yui's Heart

Chapter 12: Yui's Heart

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twelve!

* Also, this will be the first chapter to feature a different character's point of view, other than Kirito!

* I won't say anything else, other than that at the end of the chapter, there will be a few moments that didn't happen in the Anime. So, with that said, let's get right into this chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _November 1_ _st_ _, 2024 – First Floor: Town of Beginnings_

So, once we explained what had happened in the alley to Klein and Sachi, Miss Sasha offered to take us back to her Church. That's where she and the kids were staying. And there were a lot of kids, probably at least twenty. Since we had nowhere to go, she offered to let us stay in one of the Church's spare rooms.

And that brings us to now. We were sitting in the Church's main room the next morning, eating breakfast. I was distracted from eating by the kids eating and talking amongst themselves. I looked on at them.

"There's just so…" I spoke, only to be interrupted.

"Many of them." Klein finished for me. "Aren't there?"

"I know, right?" Miss Sasha asked. "It's like this pretty much every day."

The smile on Miss Sasha's face dropped.

"By the way, is Yui feeling any better?"

Speaking of Yui, she seems to have recovered after yesterday, after whatever that was. She was sitting at the breakfast table with us right now, eating her breakfast.

"Well, she got a good night's sleep, so I think she's okay." I said as I looked over at the girl in question, chowing down on a biscuit.

"I don't know." I continued. "You tell me."

"Has this ever happened to her before?" she asked.

"Well…" Klein spoke first.

"We have no idea." Asuna finished for him.

I nodded.

"You see, we found her on Floor Twenty Two, wandering in the forest." I said as I gazed at Yui. "She seems to have lost her memories."

"Oh my." Miss Sasha replied.

"That's why we came here." Asuna replied.

As she finished her sentence, Yui reached out to Asuna with her biscuit. She had a small smile on her face as she did this. Asuna took the biscuit from her and gently patted her on the head.

"We thought that someone in the Town of Beginnings may know who she is." I replied as I looked back at our hostess.

Klein spoke next.

"That being said, do you know who she is?"

She looked at Yui. After a second or two, she spoke.

"I'm sorry, I haven't. I mean, there are a lot of kids in town, but I've never seen her."

She went silent after that.

"Miss Sasha, there's just one thing that I don't understand." Sachi spoke up.

Miss Sasha looked up at her.

"How does a Church become a save haven for children trapped in SAO?" Sachi voiced her confusions. "How did you come to be their caretaker?"

Miss Sasha put a finger on her chin before speaking.

"When the game started, a lot of the children suffered severe psychological trauma. I couldn't stand by and do nothing. So, I moved to this church and made it a safe place for them to live. I walk through the town everyday looking for kids like these. Kids who might need my help. But in all this time, I've never seen her before."

All of us went quiet after that. I let out a sigh.

"Right back to square one." Asuna replied.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." I said in response.

Just then, there were three knocks at the church doors. All of us except for Yui looked over at the door. Eventually, after another set of knocks, Miss Sasha spoke.

"I suppose I should go get that." She said, as she rose from her spot at the table.

As she began to walk towards the door, Sachi spoke up.

"Kirito, Klein. Go with her."

"Okay." I said without question as I stood up.

Klein looked up from his breakfast, his mouth still full. He swallowed and spoke.

"Really? But, my breakfast!"

"Your breakfast can wait until you get back, Mister!" Sachi insisted. "Now, go!"

"Alright, alright! I'm going." He said as he got up.

He accompanied me to the door, just as Miss Sasha opened it. Once we reached Miss Sasha, I saw a lady with steel gray hair and wearing a black cloak standing outside.

"Sorry to bother you." The lady said. "I'm Yulier. I'm with the Army."

"With the Army?" I asked with surprise.

She nodded.

"May I speak with you?" she asked us.

Miss Sasha just looked at her, before looking at me.

"Kirito go get the rest of your people. I feel like you all should be present for this." She said. "Also, explain to the children that I've had to step out for a few minutes."

I nodded and turned around, breaking into a light jog back to the table. Once I got back, Asuna gave me a strange look.

"What is it?" Sachi spoke before she could.

"There's a lady here from the Army." I replied. "Her name's Yulier and she wants to speak with us. Miss Sasha thinks that the rest of us should be present. She also told us to explain to the children that she'll have to step out for a bit."

They both looked up at me, before Asuna let out a sigh.

"Okay, I'll let them know." She said as she stood up. "Come on, Yui."

 _A Few Minutes Later_

After some time passed and after Asuna had explained what was happening to the children (because she was better suited to explain than I was), she, Sachi, Yui and myself joined in others in a separate room that was less noisy. Once we had sat down, Asuna spoke first.

"So, I hope you're not here to start trouble about yesterday." She said.

Klein let out a hiss as he made hand gestures towards Asuna, the kind that said, "calm down". Asuna glanced at him but said nothing.

"God, no." she said. "In fact, I came here to thank you."

We all let out light gasps of shock.

"Thank you for putting those men into their place."

We all exchanged looks of confusion.

"Actually, I came here to ask you for your help, as well." She continued.

We all were silent.

"Seriously?" Klein finally asked with a tone of doubt evident in his voice.

I looked over at Yui, who seemed to be nodding off. Yulier dipped her head in a nod.

"You see, when we formed the Guild, we, well, it was actually our leader, Thinker, he never wanted it to be the kind of dictatorial organization it's become." She spoke once more. "At first, the mission of the Guild was to share information and food equally, among as many players as possible."

I saw where this was going.

"Let me guess." I spoke up. "The Guild got too large, didn't it?"

Yulier nodded.

"Right. And after much in-fighting, one man became very powerful." She replied. "You and one of your associates, Klein, should know his name better than most. His name is Kibaou."

Just the sound of his name made my blood run cold. Sweat began to bead up on my forehead, as scenes of his interruption at the meeting playing in my head, accompanied by the time he berated me after I saved Diavel during the boss fight with Illfang. I looked over at Klein and the look on his face told me that the same things were running through his head.

 _Kibaou being in charge of the Army would just make it easier to take his hatred out on Beta Testers,_ I thought. _This can't be good._

I turned back to Yulier.

"Yulier, how do you know that Klein and I would know who Kibaou is?" I asked.

"That talk you had with him at the end of our first boss fight isn't exactly a secret. Everyone in what would eventually become the Army knows about that talk. It's very clear that you intensely dislike him. Once you left that day, Klein and Asuna shortly followed suit. I only assume that she and him dislike Kibaou as much as you did."

Klein spoke up next.

"With all due respect Miss Yulier, Asuna and I left because I wanted to teach her what Kirito had taught me at the beginning without any distractions. I think that she learned at a much quicker rate opposed to if we had stayed with your people."

Asuna spoke next.

"There's just one thing that doesn't sit right with me."

Yulier looked at Asuna.

"If things are as bad as you say with Kibaou taking charge, why doesn't Diavel do something?" Asuna asked.

Yulier just stared at her.

"What?" she finally asked her.

Yulier looked at all of us.

"You four must not be up to speed with current events." She finally said.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

She sighed.

"Well, for one, Diavel isn't in charge anymore." She said. "And he hasn't been for quite a while."

All of us gasped.

"What does that mean?!" Klein asked, raising his voice a little.

"Calm down." I said as I turned to look at him, then back at Yulier. "Yulier, go on please."

She nodded before speaking.

"You see, it's been a few months since Diavel left. He didn't like how things in our group were going. He and Kibaou were constantly arguing over tactics and other little things. He was one of the only ones of us morally good people left. So, he took a small group of like minded players before he departed, leaving our group split in half. He left us with Kibaou and the rest of us, most of which were in a moral gray area and would do a bad thing just as soon as they'd do a good thing."

She took a breath before continuing.

"Eventually most of those people devolved into savages thanks to Kibaou's influence. That's why you're now seeing Army members "taxing" civilians. It was all his idea to do this. To get rich off of the public and live like kings, while still labeling us as an "army"."

I nodded politely as she finished.

"Can I ask a question?" Klein asked in a calmer tone this time.

She nodded.

"You don't seem to be like the Army "savages" that you've told us about." He said. "So, why are you with them?"

Yulier sighed.

"Someone has to make sure that the Guild doesn't descend into chaos. And seeing as I'm one of the only good players left, I have to try to keep things in order."

I nodded.

"Okay, so we've got the recent events out of the way." I said. "So, what about the Kibaou situation? What has he done now?"

"He and his group have been getting stronger and stronger. They've monopolized all the best monster spawn points." Yulier began to explain. "They're out of control now. As I said, they're extorting other players, under the pretext of collecting taxes."

Yui reached for her glass as Yulier finished. Klein sighed.

"So? Why doesn't anyone do something about it?" he asked.

Asuna flashed an angry look at Klein, before Yulier spoke again.

"Well, it was obvious that he didn't care about clearing the game. And that made a lot of people mad. He had to do something to get back into good graces. So, he sent the highest-level players he had to the front lines."

All of us gasped, well, except for Yui and Miss Sasha. My mind flashed back to the battle involving the Army and the blue-eyed demon. Suddenly, the Corvatz situation made sense.

 _That day that he was there, maybe he wasn't there on his own accord. Maybe he was just following orders? And maybe he won't be punished if Kibaou is taking charge?_

I looked over at Klein. He nodded at me, as if he knew what I was thinking.

"Corvatz." Asuna spoke, breaking the silence.

"Kibaou was denounced for spearheading that "operation"." Yulier continued. "That's when we began to consider kicking him out of the Guild."

"And you can do that?" Sachi asked. "Even if he's trying to take charge?"

Yulier looked up.

"I think that he knows that we, the few good players left in the Guild, want him out. So, he's gotten desperate. He's decided to eliminate Thinker."

I nodded. Suddenly, her mood changed. She looked as though she were going to cry.

"He set a trap and stranded Thinker deep in a dungeon." She said at last.

The four of us gasped.

"A dungeon?" I asked. "Which dungeon?"

"Forget which dungeon he's in!" Klein chimed in. "Why can't he just teleport out?"

"We suspect he was lured into an anti-crystal zone." Yulier replied in a sad tone.

"Does he have any weapons?" Asuna asked, disregarding my question just as Klein had.

Yulier had a sad look in her eyes.

"He didn't take anything with him. Kibaou told him he just wanted to talk unarmed." She said. "I think he believed him. And that was three days ago."

"Three days?" I asked. "Can't he find his way out?"

She looked down again.

"The dungeon is the highest level we've seen so far. He can't get out of there on his own." She said as she shut her eyes. "As his second-in-command, this is my responsibility. But the problem is, my level isn't high enough to reach him."

Klein spoke up.

"And let me guess, you want us to go fetch him for you, don't you?"

Asuna and I both looked at him with surprise.

"What?" he asked.

"Could you at least try to be polite?" I asked.

"Oh, uh, sorry." He said.

I rolled my eyes as I looked back at Yulier.

"I'm sorry about my friend, Yulier." I said. "Please, continue."

"Kibaou is using his influence to keep the rest of the Army from helping me." She said, before looking up at us with a desperate look on her face. "And when I heard that a group of some of the most powerful players anyone has ever seen were in town, I thought "that this is my chance"! I tracked you down. So, yes. If it's not too much to ask of you, I need help to get Thinker out of there!"

We all exchanged glances. Yulier suddenly stood up, surprising all of us.

"I beg you for Thinker's sake, please help me rescue him from that dungeon!"

We all exchanged glances once again. Asuna finally spoke for us.

"If you think we can help get Thinker out of there, we'd be happy to help you. But the thing is, we'd like to be sure that you're telling the truth."

Sachi gasped with surprise. Asuna and I both looked at her.

"What?" Asuna asked.

"How can you say that, Asuna?" she asked. "She seems to be telling the truth to me!"

I understood where Asuna was coming from. Yulier seemed genuine, but how could we know? Before anyone could answer, Yulier spoke once more.

"I'm sorry, I know we just met and I'm asking a lot of you, but when I think about him alone in there, I feel like I'm going insane!"

I noticed that she had begun to tear up and tears were running down her cheeks. Sachi looked at Asuna once again, this time with a serious look on her face. Asuna eventually looked back at Yulier, while she looked back at Asuna with an even more desperate look on her face. She sighed at last.

"I suppose I shouldn't jump to conclusions so soon." She said. "I apologize."

Before anyone could say anything, Yui spoke.

"It's okay, Mommy. Everything she's been telling you is the truth!"

The four of us looked at her with surprise, Asuna and I being the most surprised.

"Y-Yui, you mean you can tell?" Asuna asked her.

"Mmm-hmm." She mumbled as she nodded with a small smile on her face.

Then a confused look came onto Yui's face.

"I don't know how I can tell she is, but she is!" she spoke, as a smile returned to her face.

"Wow." Klein said. "You are an interesting little girl."

"Isn't she?" Sachi chimed in.

I finally allowed myself to chuckle as I looked up at Yulier.

"If anything, I'd rather trust her and regret it than not trust her and regret it." I said.

I looked at my group.

"Seriously, let's go. It'll all work out." I said as I closed my eyes and smiled a toothy grin. "Right?"

When I didn't get an answer, I opened my eyes. Sachi and Klein had smiles on their faces, as they nodded. Asuna on the other hand kept staring at me, before eventually smiling.

"God, you just have to be so laid back, don't you?" she asked.

She turned back to Yulier.

"Okay, we'll help. I just hope we're strong enough to do it."

Before Yulier could say anything, Klein began laughing. We all looked at him.

"What's so funny now?" I asked.

He stopped laughing after a few seconds.

"Are you kidding? I _know_ we're strong enough to handle this! With all of us combined, what could happen?" he asked. "And even if it were just you two helping her, you'd still be able to handle anything! This is gonna be a piece of cake!"

"Then why were you acting like you didn't want to do it just now, huh?" Asuna asked.

"Ah, why should I waste my strength on something when you guys can easily tackle it?"

"Well, you're coming with us, you know."

"Really? Did you really think that I didn't know I was going to be dragged along on this quest?"

"Whatever."

With all of us done talking, Yulier finally bowed her head and spoke.

"Thank you. Thank you so much!"

"I know what it feels like to want to save someone." Asuna said. "Especially someone you care for."

I looked at Asuna, as if she were hinting at me, but she didn't look back at me. I reached out and patted Yui on the head.

"You stay here and wait for the four of us to get back, okay?" I asked.

"No, I'm coming, too!" Yui protested.

We all eyed her with surprise. Miss Sasha spoke for the first time in a while.

"Oh, come on, Yui! Don't you want to stay here with me?"

"No!" she said, shaking her head and shocking Miss Sasha.

Klein let out a sigh as he leaned back in his chair.

"Great! Now she's going through her rebellious phase!" he exclaimed.

Asuna flashed him a deadly look.

"Hey, this is serious!" she said, before looking back at Yui with a gentle gaze. "It's too dangerous for you to come along this time, Yui."

Suddenly, Yui let out a few angry grunts and latched herself onto my arm, hugging me tightly.

"I'm going, too!"

Even though we tried to protest, in the end, there wasn't another option. Yui was coming with us whether we liked it or not.

 _Later – First Floor: Town of Beginnings, Black Iron Castle_

So, it turns out that there's a dungeon in Town, underneath the Black Iron Castle. Klein and I argued for several minutes about it existing, with him repeatedly telling me that it can't exist. I won that argument.

So, here we were in the Castle's basement. Asuna and I were back in our regular gear, with her wearing her uniform and me wearing my usual black outfit, respectively. As I walked in the middle of the group, Yui hummed happily to herself as she rode on my shoulders.

"I never knew this dungeon was under the Town of Beginnings." Asuna finally spoke, breaking the eerie silence in the chamber.

"I know." Klein said. "Crazy."

"There wasn't anything like this in the beta test." I chimed in.

"I think the dungeon opens up to reveal more as the floors above are cleared." Yulier replied from ahead of us. "I think Kibaou was planning on keeping this place all to himself."

 _That was interesting. If the dungeon really did reveal more of itself as floors above are cleared, how did it work?_

"That asshole!" Klein exclaimed.

"Language." Asuna replied. "There are children here."

"Ah, whatever."

"Well, exclusive access to spawns can be profitable." I said.

"The thing is, the monsters here are usually around level sixty." Yulier spoke.

I heard Klein stop walking from behind me.

"Yeah, that's high." He said.

"Come on, you big baby." I said as I continued walking without him.

"Hey, I take offense to that!" he exclaimed as I heard him begin jogging to catch up.

"With the levels here, he wouldn't be able to do much hunting." Yulier continued.

We eventually came to a staircase made of black stone, where we stopped. I picked Yui up off my shoulders and gently put her down.

"This is the entrance." Yulier replied.

Yui gazed down the staircase in awe. I smiled down at her as she made the sounds that an awe-struck child would make, as did Asuna. Yui caught my gaze. She then looked at Asuna.

"Don't worry!" she finally exclaimed. "I'm not afraid!"

Sachi walked over to Yui.

"You are such a brave little girl!" she replied as she patted her head.

Yui looked up at Sachi, beaming a smile.

"Thanks, Sashi!" she exclaimed.

Sachi chuckled as she patted Yui's head.

"We'll work on that one later, kiddo." She replied.

Asuna looked over at Yulier.

"Don't worry. Believe it or not, she's a heck of a lot tougher than she looks." She said.

"Yeah, she'll make a great warrior one day!" Klein exclaimed.

I nodded, chuckling as I did. Yui nodded as well and giggled. Yulier turned her head away from us.

"We should get going." She replied.

We began walking down the stairwell into the dungeon. Eventually, we came across a corridor and then our first monsters. They were four-eyed toads. Klein, Sachi and I charged in while Asuna stayed behind with Yui. As we slashed into the toads, I could hear Yui making awestruck noises from behind me.

"I feel like I should apologize." I heard Yulier speak. "They're doing all the fighting."

"Oh, don't worry." I heard Asuna say. "That's their thing. Especially Kirito. He really enjoys getting his battle on."

Us three continued fighting.

"We're pretty far down." Asuna continued. "Are we almost there?"

"Thinker hasn't moved from this position in a while now." Yulier spoke. "It could be a safe zone, but I'm not sure. If we can reach it, we might be able to use a teleport crystal."

Klein, Sachi and I returned after all of the toads had been defeated.

"Man, did you see all the frogs we just killed?" Klein asked as we joined the three girls.

"Um, Earth to Klein?" I asked. "I did most of the work."

Klein looked at me.

"Yeah, but when you say that, I don't get any credit!"

"Whatever."

I turned my attention to Yulier and Asuna.

"I should have helped you." Yulier replied. "I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's no problem!" I said. "Fighting is actually enjoyable. So, no biggie! And besides, they dropped some good items, too!"

"Really?" Asuna asked. "You get anything good?"

"Uh-huh!" I said as I swiped down, opened my menu and equipped a toad's leg.

As soon as she saw it, Asuna gasped with fright and disgust.

"Wh-What is that?!" she asked, as Yui stared at it the toad's leg with awe.

"It's scavenged toad meat." I said.

"Y-You mean those frogs?!" she exclaimed.

"Hey, they say the stranger the meat, the better the taste." I said gesturing at her with the leg. "Maybe you can cook it up later."

Asuna squirmed with disgust, before ripping it from my hand.

"Not on your life!" she exclaimed as she spun around and threw it as far as she could down the corridor.

"What the hell?!" I exclaimed as I looked on, disregarding that Yui was with us. "Oh, come on! What'd you do that for?!"

"Hmph!" was the only response I got from her.

"Okay, fine!" I exclaimed as I turned around and opened my menu.

I equipped all of the toad legs that I had collected, so they were all in a big pile in my arms. I turned back around.

"What am I going to do with these?!" I exclaimed, as Asuna squealed with disgust once more.

"No, no, no, no!" she cried as she started flinging them one by one down the corridor.

"Asuna!" I cried with disappointment.

As this went on, Klein and Sachi laughed, while Yulier merely just chuckled.

"Asuna, seriously! It's delicious!"

As she and I fought, Yui suddenly spoke.

"You smiled!"

We all looked at Yui, who was looking up at Yulier.

"I've never, ever seen you smile before!" she said.

Yulier just looked down at her with surprise, before shedding a small smile. Upon seeing this, Yui began to giggle. And eventually, so did Asuna, as if her anger was completely gone.

"Come on," she said as she grabbed Yui's hand. "Let's go."

 _Later_

Our group moved down to the next level of the dungeon, where we saw a corridor that matched the ones above. This time, Asuna carried Yui, as she had fallen asleep. As we walked, a room full of white light came into view.

"Hey, look!" Asuna replied. "It's a safe room!"

I activated my search skill and scanned the room.

"There's a player inside." I said.

Yulier gasped as I said that, looked at me and then back at the room ahead.

"It's Thinker!" she exclaimed as she began to run forward.

As she did that, the memory of the Moonlit Black Cats being trapped in the anti-crystal room. I fought to dismiss the image.

"Yulier, wait!" I exclaimed. "Not so fast!"

I began to run after her, leaving the others in the dust. As she continued to run, someone appeared in the doorway.

"Yulier!" the person exclaimed.

I had to assume that the person was Thinker.

"Thinker!" Yulier called back with joy, reaching her hand out as she ran.

"No, stay away!" he exclaimed. "The corridor is rigged!"

Just then, a name tag not belonging to any of us appeared ahead of us, confirming both my suspicions and Thinker's statement. The name tag said: "The Fatal Scythe". I ran even faster.

"Stop, wait!" I exclaimed.

"Yulier, come back!" Asuna chimed in.

Just then, a scythe appeared from out of nowhere and began to descend towards Yulier. I managed to reach her in time, pushing her forwards and narrowly missed being struck myself. Just then, the threat revealed itself and the corridor become illuminated. I got up and ran forward, as Asuna spoke.

"Yulier, take Yui to the safe zone and wait for us there, okay?"

"R-Right."

"Mommy…" Yui said in a sad tone.

I stopped for a brief second and turned to look at Klein and Sachi.

"Klein, Sachi, you guys go, too!"

Klein ran forward, picking up Yui as he went, while Sachi began to argue with me.

"Come on, little girl!" he said as he picked her up.

"Why me? I can fight, I can help you!"

"Now's not the time to argue Sachi, just do what I say!"

"When are you going to learn that you can let me fight and everything's going to be…"

"Just stop arguing with me and go!" I exclaimed, as my face began to turn red with anger.

Sachi gave me a look of anger herself, before she finally let out a huff as she turned and ran for the safe room, right behind Klein, Yulier and Yui. I finally turned my attention back to the threat, known as "The Fatal Scythe".

I looked up at it. It was no mistaking it, anyone would be able to recognize it. It was the spitting image of the Grim Reaper. I didn't dare take my eyes off of The Fatal Scythe, but I knew Asuna was behind me, preparing for a fight just as I was.

"Asuna," I spoke. "Take a teleport crystal and get Yui and the others out of here, now!"

I looked up at The Fatal Scythe as it prepared to strike again. An Unknown Tag appeared next to it.

"I can't see its data with my identification skill!" I said. "It's probably as strong as something from Floor Ninety! I can buy you time, just get everyone out of here!"

Asuna gasped from behind me.

"No way! I won't leave you here to die!" she said.

I barely turned my head to look at her with my peripheral vision.

"I'll catch up, I promise!" I barked. "Move it!"

I turned my head and looked back at The Fatal Scythe. She was silent for a few seconds and then said something that surprised me.

"Yulier, Klein, Sachi! Take care of Yui! Run while you still can!"

I gasped with surprise as I turned my head to look at her once again.

"Asuna!" I exclaimed.

"We won't leave…" Sachi began to shout but was cut off.

"Just go!"

Much to my dismay, Asuna ran to my side, but there was nothing that could be done now. The Fatal Scythe began to strike, and I attempted to block the strike my swords, along with Asuna's but it didn't do us any good. Once the strike landed, we were sent flying.

Asuna and I landed a few feet away from The Fatal Scythe, accompanied by a few grunts of pain. My HP had gone down a bit but was still in the green. Asuna's HP, however, was in the yellow zone. She most likely wouldn't survive another hit.

 _God damn it, why couldn't she have just done what I had told her?_

I struggled to get up and ultimately crumbled back to the stone floor.

"Kirito!" I heard Asuna call my name with worry.

Just then, I heard Sachi's voice.

"Yui, no! Stay back! It's too dangerous!"

I looked up, to see that Yui had ran from the safe area.

 _What was she doing?_

Unfortunately, as Yui ran from the room, the remaining four players were teleported out. The Fatal Scythe lost interest in Asuna and I, as Yui stepped out in front of me, as if to shield us from the monster. The monster let out a chilling growl as it stared down at the girl.

"Yui, get back! What are you doing?!"

"Yui!" Asuna called out.

The monster raised its scythe to attack.

"Daddy, Mommy, it's okay." She replied, as The Fatal Scythe struck her.

"Yui!" Asuna called out with despair.

The Fatal Scythe's weapon struck Yui. However, it surprised me when the strike was blocked. It shocked me even more when I saw a rare purple tag: Immortal Object.

"An Immortal Object?" I heard Asuna whisper from behind me.

The Fatal Scythe had been blasted back a bit. Then, as strange as it sounds, Yui began to levitate. Yui outstretched her arm and some energy that looked like and was the color of fire came from her hand. Eventually, her clothes burned away, revealing the white dress that she had been wearing when we had found her in the forest.

She also had a gigantic sword in her hand, with fire dancing up and down on its blade. She flew forward and struck The Fatal Scythe with the sword, but the monster blocked the strike. Asuna and I looked on with awe. Eventually, with a swirl of fiery energy, The Fatal Scythe was encased in a sphere that seemed to be made of fire.

And then, it just disappeared, along with the sphere. The corridor went dark again. I struggled to get up, as I continue to look at Yui with awe.

"Yui?" Asuna asked.

"Yui… What on Earth was that?" I asked.

"Daddy, Mommy." She spoke as she turned around. "Don't worry. I remember everything."

 _A Couple Minutes Later_

Minutes had passed and we now stood in the safe room, with Yui sitting down on a black stone slab of some kind. Asuna spoke first.

"Yui, say something! You remember who you are?"

"Yes." She answered almost immediately, before looking up at us with a smile on her face. "Kirito. Asuna."

The way she used our first names shocked us. Yui spoke once more and for some reason, it felt like she was using a different tone.

"Everything in the world of Sword Art Online is controlled by a single, massive system. The system is called Cardinal. It was designed to operate entirely on its own, without any human intervention. Its function is to regulate the balance of SAO according to its own discretion. From monsters and NPC AI to drop rates for items and money. Everything here is controlled by the processes the Cardinal program executes."

I listened politely, but I was honestly shocked by what she was saying.

 _How could a little girl know about all of this?!_

"That includes the psychological care of the players. Mental Health Counseling Program, prototype one. Code name: Yui." She continued, before she looked back up at us with a smile. "That is who I am."

I stared at Yui with shock.

 _Yui was a… computer program?!_

"You're a program?" Asuna asked in a tear-jerking tone, as if she had read my mind. "An AI?"

Yui looked down before she continued speaking.

"I was designed to put players at ease, that's why I was given the ability to emulate complex emotions. Nothing about me is real. Nothing." She said as a tear rolled down her cheek. "Not even my tears. I'm so sorry, Asuna."

Asuna and I were silent. Eventually, Asuna spoke.

"Yui…" she said in a sad tone as she stepped forward.

She reached her hand out towards Yui, but she tensed up and so Asuna retracted her hand.

"But then, what about your amnesia?" she asked. "Can that even happen to an AI?"

Yui continued speaking.

"Two years ago, on the day of the official launch and for reasons I never understood, Cardinal banned me from interacting with any of the players. I wasn't allowed to assist them. I couldn't do anything except continue monitoring their mental states."

 _The Cardinal could do that? Ban Yui from doing her job?_

"Their situation, in a word, was horrible. Terror, despair, rage. People were overcome with negative feelings. Some of them couldn't take it. They went insane. Under normal circumstances, my function would have been to go to such players immediately. But I wasn't permitted any contact with them. Little by little, errors began piling up inside of me and I fell apart."

The way Yui was speaking now, it seemed sad. Too sad a tone for a little girl to speak with. Of course, we now knew that Yui wasn't just a little girl. Eventually, she continued speaking.

"Then, one day, I saw four players. Their mental parameters were vastly different from anything I'd seen from the others. There was joy, peace and maybe, there was something more between two of these players. There was also occasional stress and anger, but most of the time, the four players harbored joyful emotions towards each other."

I furrowed my eyebrows.

 _These four players she mentioned, they were Klein, Sachi, Asuna and I, weren't they? But what about something more between two of us? What was she talking about?_

Yui continued speaking once more.

"I wandered through the playing fields, hoping to get as close to the four of you as I could, without being detected."

My mind flashed back to when Asuna noticed Yui in the woods a few days ago.

"So, that's why you were in the forest?" I asked.

"Yes. That's why. I've wanted to meet the four of you for the longest time." Yui spoke as tears flowed from her eyes. "That's strange isn't it? It should be impossible for me to think things like that. I'm not human, I'm a program, after all."

Her tone and the tears flowing from her eyes tugged at my heartstring and it was the same for Asuna, I imagined.

"Yui," Asuna spoke. "Maybe what you're feeling are real, human emotions."

Yui shook her head.

"I don't know. I'm confused." She said. "Nothing makes sense. I don't know what's happened to me."

I stepped forward and hunched over so I look Yui in the eye.

"You aren't just a program anymore." I said with a smile on my face. "The system can't control you. Listen, if you want something, all you have to do is say it. Go ahead, tell us what you want."

Yui let out a bit of a gasp as she continued looking at the floor. The tears disappeared.

"What I want?" she asked.

She outstretched her arms to me.

"I want…"

She looked up at us with a sad look in her eyes and a smile on her face.

"I want to stay with you forever! Daddy, Mommy!"

Asuna gasped a little bit behind me. It sounded like she started to cry as she ran past me and hugged Yui.

"You will." I heard her say. "We'll all go home. We'll be together forever, Yui."

I felt like I shouldn't make Asuna do this all on her own, so I stepped forward and put my hand on Yui's shoulder.

"Yeah. Remember, you're our child."

 _Why did it feel so weird to say that?_

"It's too late…" Yui spoke, breaking the silence between the three of us.

Asuna pulled away as I gazed at Yui with a strange look on my face.

"For what?" I asked.

Yui set her hand down on the black stone that she was sitting on.

"Look. This is actually a console that the GM can use to gain emergency access to the system."

As Yui touched the "console", I noticed that a holographic keyboard began to appear.

"I used it to delete that monster just a few minutes ago, in the corridor. And now, because I disobeyed the Cardinal's directive, the system is running a check on my program."

The way she was speaking in a low tone now was disturbing me.

"It thinks I'm a foreign object now. I'll probably be deleted at once."

Asuna gasped and I was surprised as well.

"Oh no…" She said.

"There's got to be a way around it!" I said.

Yui just looked down at the floor, before eventually looking up at as with a sad look in her eyes.

"Daddy, Mommy, thank you." She said as tears came to her eyes.

She closed her eyes.

"This is goodbye." She said in a tear-jerking tone.

Asuna gasped, closed her eyes and struggled to keep from crying.

"No!" she exclaimed as she hugged Yui once more. "I don't want that! Stay with us! Please stay! We can start living like a real family!"

Yui's form began to glow as Asuna pleaded with her. Asuna stopped pleading and opened her eyes, taking notice of this.

"Yui!" I exclaimed as I reached out to her. "Don't go!"

I ran over to her and took her hand with both of mine.

"Whenever the two of you are around, you have a way of making people smile." Yui spoke. "From now on and for me, please continue my work. Keep helping people. Share your happiness with all of them."

"I can't!" Asuna exclaimed as she hugged Yui tighter. "I won't! You have to stay with us! I can't be happy without you!"

"Smile, Mommy." Yui spoke her last words, before her form disappeared, leaving particles of light in her wake.

Asuna opened her eyes and witnessed this, before collapsing onto her knees. She hunched over and began bawling. I looked on and suddenly felt angry.

"Cardinal!" I exclaimed. "No, Kayaba!"

I ran over to the console, to see that the holo-keyboard was still present. I began typing away as fast as I could.

"Oh, you're gonna find out how things don't always go the way you want them to!" I muttered as I typed away at the keyboard.

I heard Asuna quiet down a little bit.

"Kirito," she spoke in a tear-jerked voice. "What are you…"

"If I'm fast enough, I might be able to use the GM's account to access the system!"

As I typed, a screen of flashing blue and white letter appeared in front of my eyes. I narrowed my eyes as I continued typing. A red progress bar appeared on the screen and began to fill. A flash suddenly occurred, and I was blown backwards, grunting as I landed on the floor a few feet away from the console.

"Kirito!" Asuna exclaimed as she got up and hurried over to me. "Are you okay?"

I just chuckled as I pushed myself up a bit and held out my hand to her. She looked confused, but nonetheless, she fell to her knees at my side and put out her hand, opening it up. I dropped a small, blue tear-shaped gemstone into her palm.

"What's this?" she asked.

I sat up and crossed my legs.

"The system was about to reject Yui's admin credentials, the only thing I could do was take her programming and turn it into a game object."

Asuna looked down at her palm and I nodded.

"So, this is…" she spoke, but I cut her off.

"You're holding Yui's Heart." I said.

She stared at me with a sad look, as more tears came to her eyes. She let out a gasp as she looked back down at Yui's Heart.

 _Later – Twenty Second Floor_

Later, once we returned to the Town of Beginnings and reunited with Klein and Sachi, we had explained what had happened. Yui was a computer program all along. An AI. They were just as shocked as we were. We eventually departed from Thinker, Yulier, Miss Sasha and the children. They had invited us to a banquet in our honor a few days away from today, so we'd be seeing them again soon.

We returned home to recuperate after the loss of Yui. We all sat in the living room of our cabin. All of us were silent, none of us wanted to break the silence. But, eventually one of us had to. And so, Asuna broke the silence.

"Hey, I know that this may be completely out of character for me." She started to speak.

Klein, Sachi and I looked up at her.

"But if hadn't been for what Yui had done today, that monster would have killed us." She continued. "So, I don't know, shouldn't we celebrate or something?"

All three of us gasped, because Asuna _was_ right. It was out of character of her to say something like that. Klein and I looked at each other, before we both grinned.

"Feast!" we eventually exclaimed in unison.

We both got up and ran over Asuna, grabbed both of her legs and picked her up over our shoulders, greatly shocking her.

"What the-?!" was all she could exclaim as Klein and I carried her to the kitchen.

Once we were in the kitchen, we set her down onto her feet. She wobbled there for a second, before regaining her focus and giving us a strange look.

"What the hell, guys?" she asked. "What gives?"

"Hey, you're the one who mentioned celebrating!" I said.

"Yeah, you gotta make dinner!" Klein chimed in. "And not just dinner! A full course meal! A feast, baby!"

Asuna frowned at him but turned towards the kitchen counter.

"Alright, alright. I'll get started!" she said. "And don't call me "baby"!"

Asuna began working to make a "feast", as we had put it.

"Make it snappy, I'm hungry!" Klein spoke a few minutes later.

"Okay." Asuna said with an impatient tone.

"Like, really fast!"

"Okay!"

"Like, super-duper fast!"

"Okay!"

"Actually, you know what? I'll just have a snack to tide me over while I wait."

Asuna let out a sigh.

"Oh, no you don't!" she said. "I'm going to make a big feast like you requested, so you're going to wait!"

"Oh, never mind!" Klein replied.

"What?" I asked as I turned to see him with a sandwich in his hand.

"I found a sandwich." He said.

"What?" Asuna asked as she turned to look at him.

Her eyes went wide as she saw him holding the sandwich.

"Hey, don't! That's my lunch…" she spoke as he bit into the sandwich. "…for tomorrow."

Asuna's face turned red as she stared at Klein eating her sandwich. Klein had eaten half of the sandwich in only a few seconds flat! He looked at her as he ate the rest of it.

"What?" he asked with his mouth full. "It's good!"

That's when Asuna lost her cool. She paced over to him, turned him around and began pushing him towards the kitchen door.

"Out, out!" she exclaimed as she pushed him out the door, allowing it to close as he was pushed out.

She finally let out a sigh as she returned to working on the feast. I walked over to her and put my back against the counter as she worked.

"So, whatcha making?" I asked.

"You'll see." She replied in a calmer tone.

"Are you making your amazing sandwiches?"

"You'll find out."

"What about stew? Is it stew?"

"I said, you'll find out!"

"What about fish?"

Asuna let out an annoyed sigh as she slammed her hands down onto the counter and looked at me.

"Look, I get that you're excited about my cooking, okay? But can you please just be quiet so that I can focus?" she asked as she turned back to the counter, sniffling as she did. "Besides, it can't be fish because none of you have gone out and caught anything yet."

"Okay, I'll be quiet. Sorry."

"It's okay." She said as she wiped her eyes. "I just can't focus with it being loud."

After that, I went quiet as she said. But of course, a few minutes later, I had to open my mouth again.

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure it'll taste great!" I said, giving her a thumbs up.

Then, she completely took me by surprise. She turned to look at me and put a knife to my throat within a flash. I stared at her with the serious gaze on her face and then I looked down at the knife, as beads of sweat began to run down my face.

"Um, I think I hear Klein calling me, so I'm going to see what he wants!" I said in a nervous tone as I pointed at the door behind me. "So, bye Asuna!"

"Best thing I've heard all day." I heard her mutter from behind me as I left.

I dashed through the door to the living room and slowed to a walk, walking over to one of the couches to sit down.

"So, what's it like in there?" Klein asked as I sat down.

I looked over at him.

"She's just a little pissed off." I replied.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"What is she doing?" Sachi chimed in.

"She's making a feast to honor what Yui did for us." I said. "And I talked too much."

Klein began chuckling.

"Sounds like you really screwed up, man." He said.

"Shut up."

Just then, Sachi got up from the couch.

"You know what?" she asked. "I'm going to go see if she needs help."

"Um, she kinda wants to be left alone." I said.

She ignored me as she walked into the kitchen, closing the door behind her. Once she had left, Klein and I sat there for several minutes in silence. Eventually he spoke.

"So, you want to do something?"

I looked up at him.

"Like what?"

"Wanna eavesdrop on them?"

"How?"

He grinned.

"I can press my ear against the door and use my listening skill to hear what they're saying."

I shrugged.

"What else are we going to do?"

 _Sachi_

I sat on the counter as Asuna worked on dinner across the room from me. I let out a sniffle as I listened to Asuna prepare the food. Asuna turned to look at me.

"Sachi, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing." I said as I looked up at her with a smile on my face, wiping my eyes as I did.

Asuna stopped preparing the food and walked over to me.

"Hey, I'm always here for my friends when they need help." She said. "So, what is it?"

I shook my head.

"You wouldn't understand." I said.

She looked at me with a sympathetic look.

"Lay it on me." She said with a smile on her face.

I wiped my eyes as I looked back at her.

"Okay," I said. "Here goes."

She nodded at me, signaling for me to go on.

"I have a mega crush on Kirito."

Her eyes went wide with surprise.

"Y-You do?" she asked.

"I thought you knew."

"No. No, I didn't."

"Mmm."

I looked down as one of us tried to figure out something to say next.

"Does he know that you have a crush on him?"

I nodded.

"So, why don't you two start dating? Why doesn't he ask you out or vice versa?"

I let out a sigh.

"Because I can't go out with him."

"Why can't you?"

I looked back up at her with a sad smile on my face.

"Because, I'm not the girl he's supposed to be with."

Asuna looked back at me with surprise.

"Well, who's he supposed to be with?"

I chuckled.

"Do you really have to ask that question?"

She just looked back at me with confusion. I looked at her with a sad smile on my face.

"You. You're the girl he's supposed to be with, Asuna."

She stared back at me with shock as her face went pale.

"M-Me?"

I closed my eyes and nodded.

"Why me?!"

I opened my eyes and looked back at her with surprise.

 _This is not the response that I had expected from her!_

"Do you really have to ask?"

A look of confusion came onto her face.

"You're beautiful, Asuna. You shouldn't have to question why."

"Um, thanks?"

I sighed.

"Why are you surprised?" I asked.

"Um, because Kirito and I hardly get along."

"Don't let that fool you."

"Huh?"

"Asuna, I've seen you and him every day. The "we hardly get along" that you speak of, isn't an excuse. You guys have gotten along great since we joined the Knights of the Blood Oath. You guys haven't had a bad disagreement in a while now."

"Yeah, but…"

"You guys came together to care for Yui and were comfortable taking the roles of "mother" and "father". Would people who "don't get along" be able to do that comfortably?"

"Um…"

"See, you can't answer that, can you?"

"No, I suppose I can't." she spoke as she sighed. "Look Sachi, it just wouldn't work out between me and him."

"How do you know that?"

"I don't…"

"Is there something wrong with Kirito?"

"Well, no! I mean, he doesn't put himself first when it comes to our party, he looks out for all of us…"

"I wasn't talking about that, Asuna."

"What?"

"Is there anything about him that you don't like?"

"No, not at all! He's actually pretty handsome and he's kind of cute when he's serious."

"See, I knew this wasn't a one-sided thing."

"What does that mean?"

"You're not the only one that likes things about the other."

"What do you mean? Stop being so cryptic!"

"Sorry! But he likes stuff about you. He likes your hair and he thinks that your eyes are pretty to look at."

"How would you know that?"

"Because, he told me himself."

Her face flushed once I said that. And then her face went red as a huge blush spread across her cheeks.

 _Kirito_

Klein was listening in to the conversation that Asuna and Sachi were having when he turned to look at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Dude, you might want to run." He replied.

I raised an eyebrow and was about to ask why, but I didn't get the chance. The door to the kitchen was flung open and Asuna ran out of the room with a flash.

"Kirito!" she exclaimed my name, with a red blush on her cheeks.

She reached me within a flash and once she did, she slapped me across the face, and I crumbled into my chair.

 _What had I done this time?_

 _One Hour Later_

We all sat at the dinner table in silence. So, apparently Sachi told Asuna that I liked her hair and that I thought her eyes were pretty to look at. And I guess Asuna didn't like it or was embarrassed? It didn't make sense to me. Most people would take that as a compliment!

So, here we were, the big feast in Yui's honor. It was sandwiches and stew, not a huge buffet of food like Klein wanted, but he didn't complain. Eventually, I broke the silence at the table.

"Hey, Asuna?" I asked in a cautious tone.

She looked up at me, with a dangerous look in her eyes.

"Um, can you pass the salt?" I asked.

"I can get that for you, Kiri-Dude." Klein spoke up as he reached across the table for it.

"No, I got it." She spoke in a dangerously low tone.

She reached across the table and picked up the salt container. Then, she did something that surprised me. She activated her Throwing Skill and threw the container across the table at me. I was expecting this, so I wasn't able to catch it. The container of salt hit me in the forehead, sending me and my chair backwards.

"Bullseye." I heard Asuna mutter.

I let out a groan as I sat up and felt my forehead.

"Oh, right. Being hit in the forehead doesn't hurt." I said.

Klein let out a grunt but said nothing. I stood up, pulling my chair back up with me as I went. I sat back down and pushed myself back into place.

"Hey, Kirito?" Klein asked.

"Yeah?"

"From now on, if you need something, just ask someone else."

"Duly noted."

After that, we all went back to eating in silence.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's the chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed this one!

* I hope you guys liked the added scene that I put at the end here, instead of taking the ending in the Anime. It just didn't make sense in this case to use the ending that the Anime episode took, so this is how it came out. As for Asuna's reaction, that'll be sort of explained in the next chapter.

* Anyway, like I said, hope you guys enjoyed. I'm going to go though, so have a fantastic day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki: Sorry about not leaving any reviews for the past few chapters! I have been busy lately IRL, so I have been reading on mobile, which makes it very difficult to leave comments/reviews._

 _Anyways, great chapters! I loved your version of Chapter/Episode 9! I can't wait to see your version of Chapter/Episode 14! Keep up the awesome job! Also, just because I haven't been leaving reviews lately doesn't mean that I haven't been reading each new chapter. I am still reading your story, so don't worry if I don't always leave a review._

Thanks, Naruto. No, by all means dude, I understand. I had been busy in real life as well, that's why there wasn't a new chapter for a while. But now I am back, so hopefully there won't be long periods like that anymore. I'm glad you enjoyed Chapter 9, although that was one of my least favorite episodes to work with.

I think the only parts of the chapter I liked writing were Kirito with his duel wielding and at the end where Sachi confesses that she has a crush on him but can't go through with her feelings. As I keep saying, I'm excited as fuck (pardon my French) to adapt Episode Fourteen. I think I have a great idea and I can't wait to put it to paper. I may have expressed already how different from the source material it will be, but all I'll say is, forget what you know.

You don't have to review unless you really want to give feedback, all I want for you is to read the story. I like a few reviews every once and a while, but I don't need them. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito continues to comfort Asuna after Yui's sacrifice. While enjoying a fishing tournament, Kirito's group receives an urgent message from the Guild leader, requesting their return.


	13. Chapter 13: Edge of Hell's Abyss

Chapter 13: Edge of Hell's Abyss

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Thirteen!

* So, once again, we'll be starting off with original content that wasn't featured in the actual episode. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy and let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _November 4_ _th_ _, 2024 – Twenty Second Floor: Hot Spring_

I let out a whoop of excitement as I jumped into the hot spring. I sank beneath the water, before surfacing and spitting out water.

"Cannonball!" I heard Klein exclaim.

I looked up as I saw Klein flailing in the air, before ultimately hitting the water with a belly-flop. I stared at the spot that Klein had impacted the water and he eventually surfaced, exclaiming with pain.

"Oh, right." He said. "Belly-flopping doesn't hurt."

"Will you shut up about that?" I asked. "That's becoming like a running gag with us!"

Klein grinned at me.

"What, are you kidding me? You used that line last week!"

"Ahem." A voice interrupted us.

We both looked up to see Sachi and Asuna standing on dry land above us. Sachi was wearing short shorts and a T-shirt, because she was shy about her appearance, I guess. And Asuna was wearing a one piece swimsuit, as well as a small, tear-shaped blue crystal around her neck as a necklace - Yui's Heart.

"Boys." Asuna muttered, looking at Sachi as she rolled her eyes.

Sachi sat down on the edge of the hot spring and put her feet into the water, letting out a relaxed sigh. As for Asuna, she began lying out her towel on the ground.

"Hey, what are you doing, Asuna?" I asked.

She turned back to look at me.

"I'm going to work on my tan, okay?" she replied. "I don't really feel like swimming."

"Why would you work on a tan when it wouldn't translate back to the real world?" I asked as I splashed her with a wave of water.

I caught Sachi too, causing her to kick water at me. Asuna turned around and looked at me with an angry look on her face.

"Knock it off, midget!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, so I'm a midget, am I?" I asked as I splashed her again. "Oh, whatever shall I do?"

She let out an irritated grunt.

"Okay, that's it!" she exclaimed. "You're mine!"

Within a flash, Asuna ran to the edge of spring, jumped and landed on me, getting me into a headlock as she sunk the both of us.

 _One Hour Later – Twenty Second Floor_

It had been sunset when we all went down to the hot spring. And just so you know, unlike in real life, the hot springs in SAO were perfectly safe to swim in. We all put what we wanted to do that day to a vote. And the hot spring suggestion won. So, we decided to go later in the day.

As of recent events, the barbecue that Miss Sasha, Yulier and Thinker invited us to had been yesterday. Thinker and Yulier informed us that Kibaou had finally been evicted from the Guild, so that put Klein and I at ease. However, it's not like his leaving would improve the Guild, because there may _not_ be a Guild anymore.

Thinker told us that after this dilemma, he was thinking about disbanding the Army – permanently. It was a bold move, but after what had happened, no one questioned Thinker. And speaking of Thinker and Yulier, almost to no one's surprise, they started dating after the dungeon incident.

Anyway, about an hour had passed and we had returned to the cabin. While the girls went to go get changed, Klein and I decided to hang out in the sauna for a while.

"Oh, what a day." Klein said as he sat down on the bench across from me.

"You said it." I said as I sat down myself. "What a whole day of doing nothing."

"Hey, not doing nothing is busy work." Klein said. "And I don't like busy work."

I eyed him with a strange look.

"Since when do you act so lazy?"

He shrugged.

"We've been out of action for a while, so I guess I developed a lazy habit."

"Yeah, well, we're going to have to go back to the front lines at some point." I said. "We can't beat this game if we don't."

Klein heaved a sigh.

"Ugh, don't remind me."

We went silent for a few seconds after that.

"Hey, Klein?" I asked.

"Yeah?"

"Do you ever think about the real world?"

"Yeah, man. All the time! I think about how I missed out on my teriyaki-mayo pizza and ginger ale almost every day."

"Be serious!"

"I am serious! It would've been a great pizza."

"Klein!"

"Alright, alright! Yes, I think about the real world all the time! I miss it and I want to go back. There are things I haven't done yet."

"Me too. And I worry about my sister, erm, my cousin every day. And God knows how all of this is affecting my aunt. I want to be able to see them again. And yes, there's also stuff that I haven't done yet."

Klein stayed silent.

"But the trouble is, that we can't get back to the real world without clearing the game. We're going to have to get back out there at some point!"

"Yeah. Yeah, you're right."

We both went silent again after that.

"Hey, Kirito. You asked me a question. So, let me ask you a question."

"Okay. What's on your mind?"

"Why are girls so weird?"

I looked up at him.

"What do you mean?"

He sighed.

"I mean, why do girls act the way they do? Like, they freak out and get angry when you compliment them! What's up with that?"

"Oh, you're talking about how Sachi told Asuna what I think about her, then she blushed, got upset and hit me."

"Yeah! What's up with that?"

Suddenly, it hit me. The stuff he was saying, it made sense. Why hadn't I questioned why Asuna was mad about it the other day?

"Yeah, you're right! Why did she get mad about it? Any other person would be flattered, or at least take it as a compliment!"

Klein nodded.

"So, why are they like that? Why is _Asuna_ like that?"

"So, this conversation went from how all girls are like that, to how just Asuna is like that?"

"Um, yeah. I guess it did."

We went silent again.

"But seriously," Klein spoke once more. "Why is she like that?"

"I don't know, man." I said. "I just don't know. I don't have an answer."

I sighed as I sat back.

"You know, it's your turn to go fishing tomorrow. You should go get some rest." Klein replied.

"Yeah, you're probably right." I said. "I think we could all use some rest."

Klein stood up.

"Well, I'm going to go." He said as he walked towards the door. "Good night, man."

I looked up.

"Yeah, good night."

 _A Few Minutes Later_

I walked out of the sauna after having dried myself off and put on pants and a T-shirt. I walked upstairs towards the room we all shared. I was walking through the living room, when I heard a sneeze that stopped me in my place. I scanned the whole room with my search skill and I eventually recognized Asuna sitting on the couch in the dark, by herself. She was wearing shorts and a T-shirt and had her knees drawn up to her chest.

"Asuna?" I asked as I walked over to the couch.

She didn't look up at me as she continued staring off into space.

"Asuna." I said her name as I sat down on the couch next to her. "Are you alright?"

When she didn't answer, I felt her forearm and noticed that she was cold.

"Asuna! You're shivering! What's the matter?!"

"Kirito…"

"Yes?"

"It's Yui…"

"What about her?"

Asuna sniffled before doing something that surprised me. She broke down and started bawling again, before throwing her arms around me and pressing her face into my shirt.

"I miss her so much, Kirito!" she wailed as she got my shirt wet with her tears.

I sat there in shock, unsure of what to do. So, I eventually began rubbing her back.

"Um, there, there." I said in the most awkward tone imaginable. "It'll be alright."

She continued crying into my shirt. And so, I continued rubbing her back in an attempt to calm her down.

"It's alright. Remember Asuna, this isn't what Yui would have wanted for you. She'd want you to be happy, not sad. And _I_ want you to be happy. It makes me upset when you're sad!"

Her cries grew quieter. Eventually, she stopped crying and pulled away from me.

"Are you okay, now?" I asked her with concern.

She nodded without a word as she continued to sniffle. For some reason, I got the idea that she didn't feel better.

"Hey," I said as I laid my back against the couch. "Come here."

She moved closer to me and I decided to test the waters, by putting my arm around her. It sort of surprised me when she rested her head on my shoulder without question. She finally let out a sigh.

"Thank you, Kirito." She said at last. "You're a good friend."

"You're welcome. I want you to be happy, Asuna. I don't like it when my friends are sad."

She nodded. We sat there in silence for a while, before she spoke.

"You should go to bed, Kirito. You're going fishing tomorrow."

I disregarded what she said.

"Oh, I'll be fine, Asuna. I just want to make sure that you're okay."

"I am okay, Kirito! But really, you should go to bed!"

I went against what she said and decided to stay with her for a little while longer. After maybe ten minutes or so of sitting with her, I noticed that her breathing had steadied.

"Hey, Asuna?" I said her name.

I didn't get an answer. I looked to my left, to see that Asuna had fallen asleep with her head resting on my shoulder! I heaved a sigh.

"Oh, Asuna." I said as I moved to get up off of the couch.

As she threatened to fall over onto the couch, I scooped her up into my arms and stood up with her. In her sleep, she began nuzzling her head against my chest, likely trying to get comfortable. I slowly and gingerly carried her into the bedroom and over to her bed. I laid her down on my bed, so I could turn to her bed and pull the covers back.

Once I had done that, I turned back around and picked her up again. I laid her down on her bed and pulled the covers up to her shoulders. Once I saw her relax under the covers without waking up, I let out another sigh and paced over to my bed. I pulled my covers back and laid down. I put my head on the pillow and fell asleep within a few minutes.

 _The Next Morning_

The following morning, I sat at the kitchen table, eating my breakfast. Asuna and I had barely spoken to each other, not that I really cared. I only wanted to cheer her up last night and I think I had succeeded. If she was grateful, then great! I didn't need her to thank me.

"Morning, Kirito!" Sachi spoke as she sat down at the table.

"What? Oh, yeah." I said as I looked up. "Good morning."

"You okay, Kiri-Dude?" Klein asked from his seat.

I nodded.

"Yeah." I said as I rubbed my eyes. "Just tired."

"Well, you better wake up." He said. "It's fishing day!"

"Don't remind me. Also, you're coming with me."

"Um, actually, I think I'll pass, Kiri-Dude. I have stuff to do around here today."

"What could you possibly have to do, Klein?"

"Oh, I mean, you know, lots of stuff! I need to relax as I comprehend that our time here might be ending soon, and we'll have to go back to the front lines!"

I sighed.

"Whatever man. Enjoy your "prolonged relaxation"."

I scarfed down the rest of my breakfast and stood up.

"Oh, I sure will. Enjoy fishing!"

I rolled my eyes as I walked back towards the bedroom. I opened my inventory and equipped my clothes for the day. Then, I made sure that a fishing rod was in my inventory as well. I let out a sigh as I walked back out to the main room of the cabin.

"Okay, I'm heading out!" I said. "I'll see you guys later!"

"Why so early?" Sachi asked.

"Because I don't like fishing, namely because I suck at it. I just want to get it over with and get back here."

"Makes sense." Klein replied.

"Says the guy who's staying home to relax." I said as I turned my head to look at him.

He just grinned at me without a word. I let out a sigh.

"Whatever. Anyway, I'm going to head out. Sachi, be yourself." I said, before looking at Klein once more. "Klein, I'd say the same thing, but lately "being yourself" means being lazy."

"Why did you choose to say that?" Sachi asked with confusion.

"I don't know. I didn't want to use this stereotypical goodbye." I said as I walked towards the door. "Anyway, I'll see you guys later, bye!"

I walked out the door and was on my way down to the lake, when someone called my name.

"Kirito!" Asuna called from behind me. "Wait up!"

I turned and looked back to see Asuna jogging up to me, holding a sack in her hand.

"Asuna, what is it?" I asked.

"You forgot your lunch!" she said, holding the sack out to me, with a smile on her face.

I stared at her with surprise.

"You packed me a lunch?" I asked.

"Of course!" she said with a smile still on her face. "Well? Go ahead and take it, dummy!"

I was surprised because Asuna hadn't packed me a lunch in a while now. But I took it from her, nonetheless.

"Thanks, Asuna." I said as I added the sack to my inventory.

"You're welcome!" she replied.

"Well," I said as I turned back around. "I'll see you later!"

"Hey, Kirito?" she said my name again.

I turned to look at her once more.

"Yeah?"

"I made you lunch to say, thank you."

"You made me lunch to say, "thank you"?"

She nodded as she put her hands together in front of herself.

"What do you have to thank me for. Asuna?"

"I wanted to thank you for last night. You know, cheering me up?"

Suddenly, I wasn't so surprised anymore.

"Oh. Well, you don't have to thank me, Asuna. That's what friends are for! I told you that I don't like it when you guys are sad!"

She shook her head, the smile on her face was now gone.

"No, I do have to thank you. You really made me feel better last night. If it weren't for you cheering me up last night, I may be miserable right now! So, I wanted to pay you back. And I know that you like my cooking, so…"

"So, you made me lunch."

She nodded.

"Well, I appreciate it. Thank you."

"No, thank _you._ "

I let out a sigh and closed my eyes.

 _She isn't going to let this go until I accept her thanks, is she?_

I opened my eyes and nodded.

"You're welcome."

She smiled with gratitude.

"Is there anything else, Asuna?"

She nodded.

"Okay, what is it?"

"Thanks for tucking me in last night. You could have left me asleep on that couch, but you didn't."

"Why would I leave you on the couch? I'm not sure that it would be comfortable enough to sleep on. And besides, it seemed like you were perfectly comfortable resting your head on my shoulder!"

Asuna blushed and her cheeks turned light pink. I thought she was going to yell, as she usually did in a situation like this. But instead, she just smiled, the pink blush remaining on her cheeks. I stepped forward and put my hand on her shoulder.

"Look, I gotta go. But we'll talk later, okay?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Okay." She said.

I smiled back at her as I retracted my hand and backed up, waving as I did. She waved as well. I turned around and began walking.

"Have a good time!" she called. "And try to actually catch something!"

I turned my head and smiled at her, before I continued walking.

 _Several Hours Later – Twenty Second Floor: Lake Outside Coral City_

I sat all by myself on the dock, barely having caught anything since I had arrived several hours ago. I pulled my line back and reeled it in, until I saw the end of the line with the hook. And as usual, my bait was gone. I heaved a sigh.

 _Why did it have to be my turn to go fishing today?_

All of a sudden, I heard a voice from behind me.

"Catch anything?" a male voice asked.

"Huh?" I asked with surprise as I looked to my left, to see that I was no longer alone on the dock.

There was now an older man standing on the dock with me, wearing light pants, a light olive shirt and a vest. He chuckled in response to my surprised reaction.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to sneak up on you like that!" he said, before casting his line out to the water.

He sat down next to me on the dock.

"My name is Nishida and I'm a fisherman. In the game, anyway! Back in Japan, I was the head of network security for a company called "Toto High-Speed Internet"."

I could have sworn I recognized that name.

"I'm Kirito." I introduced myself. "Wait… Wasn't Toto the company that…"

"Yep." He interrupted me. "We were the folks in charge of network security for this game."

I watched him as he focused on his fishing rod. I gasped as he seemed to be getting a bite.

"It's a big one!" I exclaimed in awe.

"Yeah, but I've caught bigger!" Mr. Nishida replied as he kept working on reeling it in.

After a second or two more, he pulled a purple fish with indigo-colored stripes out of the water.

"Awesome!" I said.

"Thanks!" he said as the fish disappeared into his inventory.

He put a finger to his chin.

"I'm good at catchin' them, but cookin' them? Yeah, not so good! I'd love to make sashimi or a nice stew out of 'em! But what's the point when I don't have any soy sauce?"

 _Not good at cooking, huh? Don't have any soy sauce, huh? Hmm, I think I can help this guy out._

"I could go for a fish cooked in soy sauce right now!" he continued. "Or with radishes or…"

I hated to interrupt Mr. Nishida, but I did.

"Hey, uh, if you want, I might be able to help you out with that."

He went silent for a few seconds, before looking at me with a serious look on his face.

"Say, what?" he asked.

 _Later That Evening_

Mr. Nishida let out a sigh of satisfaction as he finished his meal.

"That was amazing meal!" he said. "I had no idea you could get soy sauce in this world!"

Klein chuckled in response.

"Well, actually, it's homemade!" he said. "Right, Asuna?"

Asuna beamed with pride.

"Well, I don't want to brag, but yes." She said. "Yes, it is. If you want, you can take some home with you!"

"Really?" Mr. Nishida asked. "Ma'am, my taste buds bow down before you!"

Asuna began chuckling across the table from me.

"I'm glad you liked it. By the way, how high is your fishing skill?" she asked.

Klein spoke up once more.

"She's only asking because Kirito never catches anything!"

Mr. Nishida began laughing. I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, well, maybe if all the lakes on this floor weren't so hard!"

Klein only laughed.

"Give it up, pal! You already said this morning that you suck at fishing!"

I sighed.

"I regret telling you guys that."

"And actually, that's not true." Mr. Nishida replied. "As far as fishing goes, the only lake where it's difficult to catch anything in is the big one that you were at today."

"What?!" I exclaimed.

Everyone at the table began to chuckle.

"Classic Kirito!" Klein said with glee. "Always getting lost!"

"Shut up." I said. "But seriously, why would someone design the game like that?"

"Yes, good question." Mr. Nishida said. "That lake is the home of the king of all fish!"

Asuna's and Sachi's eyes went wide with awe.

"Seriously?" they asked in unison, while I said it in a sarcastic tone.

"Yep. We're old pals. I've had him on the end of my hook a few times. But he's so strong, that he yanks the pole right out of my hands every time!"

Asuna and Sachi kept looking at him with awe, while Klein and I had skeptical looks on our faces.

"Do you buy this, Kirito?" he asked me.

"I dunno, it kind of seems a bit far-fetched to me." I replied.

"No, he's real! In fact, I was wondering, do you have any plans for tomorrow?" Mr. Nishida asked.

 _That Night_

I yawned as I stretched out on my bed.

"I don't mind helping the old guy out but how am I supposed to do a switch with a fishing pole?" I asked out loud.

"Oh, you'll figure it out." Asuna replied as she sat down on her bed. "I have faith in you."

"Yeah, Kiri-Dude!" Klein replied as he flopped down on his bed. "You're the only guy I know who could pull it off!"

I let out a sigh as I laid down and rested my hand against my forehead.

"Thanks." I said with sarcasm.

"What if you catch it?" Sachi asked.

"What?" I asked as I looked at her.

"What if you caught it?" she repeated herself.

"Yeah!" Asuna chimed in. "What would you do if you caught it? Would you keep it?"

"Is that even possible?" Klein asked us.

I shrugged as I turned off the light next to my bed.

"I don't know. But you have to admit, he is a pretty cool guy." I said as I laid down.

"When you showed up with him, I have to say that I was a little nervous at first." Asuna said. "I mean, come on, "who is this guy"?"

"That's what I thought, too." Sachi replied.

Everyone went silent, before Asuna chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad I didn't say anything about it." She said. "Because he turned out to be really nice. And yes, he's kind of cool, too."

"Yeah!" Klein chimed in once more. "He's a pretty rad dude!"

I looked up at him.

"Rad?" I asked.

He just shrugged without a word. More silence.

"Hey," Asuna asked. "Isn't it funny how people are living their lives here and since we're on the front lines, they have sort of become our responsibility?"

I yawned.

"With us fighting on the front lines, it's up to us to ensure that they get back home." I said, before looking up at Klein. "That's why we need to go back at some point."

He looked back at me and nodded after a while. I laid back down.

"Well," Klein said. "Taking a night off never hurt anybody."

I sighed.

"Time's almost up, Klein." I said. "Your relaxing can't last forever."

 _November 6_ _th_ _, 2024 – Twenty Second Floor_

"What on Earth are you wearing?" I asked.

I was looking at Asuna, who wore a gown made of up the colors light brown and light red, along with wearing a beige fabric on her head, like a turban, keeping her brown hair out of sight. She looked at me with a smile on her face.

"No, seriously! What are you wearing?!" I asked with confusion.

Her smile disappeared.

"What's wrong with it?" she asked.

I gave her a bewildered look.

"What's wrong with it? How about the fact that it completely goes against your character?" I asked. "Lighting Fast Asuna" doesn't wear gowns like that and completely cover herself up. And besides, you're covering up your hair!"

Asuna rolled her eyes.

"Okay, you're just mad that I'm covering up my hair." She said.

"What?" I asked. "No!"

"Kirito, it's no secret that you like my hair."

"I am not mad that you're covering up your hair."

"Yes, you are!"

"Am not!"

"Are to!"

"Am not!"

"Are to!"

"Hey!" Klein interrupted us.

Asuna and I both turned to look at Klein and Sachi.

"If you two are going to bicker like an old married couple, can you hold off for just a little while?" he asked. "Sachi and I need time to sell tickets!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Haven't you used that joke before?" Asuna asked him.

"How should I know?" he asked as he shrugged. "Maybe? I don't know!"

I turned back to Asuna.

"But seriously, why are you wearing that?" I asked.

"Kirito, this fishing festival is a big deal! Players from all over are coming to watch!" she said. "Players who may know about my achievements in The Knights of the Blood Oath! And now just isn't the time for me to be making a public appearance!"

"Since when do you care about publicity?"

"Look, we're still on vacation. And I don't feel like being seen in public yet!"

I shrugged.

"Whatever you say. Are we ready to go?"

Everyone nodded virtually without a word. I heaved a sigh.

"Then let's go."

 _Sometime Later – Floor Twenty Two: Lake Outside Coral City_

The festival was crowded, to say the least. Crowded with people coming to cheer Mr. Nishida on or just crowded with the general onlookers.

"Oh my God." I said as I looked around.

"So many people." Klein replied as he did the same.

"Can you believe all the people who showed up?" Asuna asked from right next to me.

I just sighed in response.

 _Why had I agreed to this?_

"Well, here we go!" Mr. Nishida exclaimed with enthusiasm, standing in the grass in front of the dock. "Thanks for your patience everyone! Here comes today's main event!"

Everyone began cheering.

"Well," I said with a sigh. "I should probably get up there."

I began walking forward but was pushed forward by Klein.

"Yeah, man! Have fun! Go catch a fish!"

I said nothing in return as I walked up to Mr. Nishida.

"Kirito, let's catch us a fish!" he replied once I reached him.

I sighed.

 _Why did I agree to this again?_

Mr. Nishida turned around with his bait in hand.

"Yay." I said with less enthusiasm than Mr. Nishida.

That's when I noticed that the bait in his hand was alive. Just then, I heard Sachi and Asuna gasp with fright and disgust from behind me.

"How big is this thing, anyway?" I asked.

He raised the fishing pole without a word.

"Okay, here goes nothing!" he exclaimed as he charged his fishing skill.

He cast the line out onto the lake and the hooked bait landed in the water several feet from the dock. Everyone around us made awestruck noises once he did that. The entire festival went mostly quiet after that. And I just stood there, doing nothing to help whatsoever. I listened to few people around me murmur amongst themselves.

Everything was relatively quiet on Mr. Nishida's end as well. And then, there was a slight tug on the line. Since no one said a word, I let out a sigh as I walked onto the dock with him.

"Um, shouldn't you reel it in?" I whispered.

"No, not yet!" he whispered back in a quick tone.

The line began to be tugged harder.

"Uh… Nishida?"

"Hang on. Not yet."

The line got tugged on so hard, that the rod itself began to bend.

"Now!" he exclaimed as he began to reel it in.

His fishing skill activated once again.

"I got this sucker!" he exclaimed, as he pushed the fishing pole into my hands. "Here!"

"Uh… switch?" I asked with confusion.

Mr. Nishida let go of the rod and took off running. The tug on the line was so high that I was pulled forward towards the end of the dock.

"Kirito!" Sachi exclaimed with worry.

I strained so much that I couldn't say anything as I was pulled to the very edge of the dock. I tried my best to pull harder.

"Come here, you bastard!" I exclaimed as I turned and began to run back towards the grass.

I ran towards the grass, pulling as hard as I could.

"Look!" Asuna exclaimed as she pointed towards the water. "It's coming up!"

Everyone began to run towards the water. I was finally back on the grass, turned around facing the water once more, with the fishing pole still in hand.

"I think I tired him out!" I said with a confident grin on my face.

Just then, all of the players began running past me, one by one.

"Huh?" I said as I looked up.

Asuna, Klein, Sachi and Mr. Nishida were the last ones to run past me. I turned to watch them go.

"Hey, where are you going?!" I asked. "Hey!"

Suddenly, I was pulled off my feet. And to make matters worse, the line had snapped.

"Oh, no!" I exclaimed as I got up and ran out to the edge of the dock. "No, no, no, no, no!"

I heard my friends calling my name, but I ignored them.

"Look out!" I heard Asuna and Sachi call to me in unison.

I turned back to look at them.

"For what?" I called back to them.

As I spoke, a huge wave erupted from the water. I fell backwards as I was completely drenched. I noticed a gigantic shadow cover me as well as the ground around me. I stared in shock up at a giant orange fish that stood above me on all fours. So, if it stood on four legs, was it really a fish? Its eyes turned red and it let out a terrifying shriek. I let out a scream, as I got up and ran. I kept running until I got back to my friends, where I hid behind them.

"You ran and left me behind?" I asked. "That's not fair!"

Sachi just chuckled as the rest of them watched the giant fish.

"Kirito!" Mr. Nishida said my name. "Here it comes!"

I looked ahead to see that the fish was indeed bounding towards us. And upon closer inspection, it appeared to have six legs, not four.

"It can run?" Klein asked.

"You're telling me…" I muttered. "It's like a crazy lungfish!"

"Kirito!" Mr. Nishida exclaimed once more. "This is serious, that thing's coming for us! Hurry and do something!"

"Me?" I asked. "Uh, no thanks. I can see everything just fine from back here, thank you."

Asuna let out a sigh.

"Okay, guess I'll take care of this." She said.

She suddenly ripped off her gown, revealing that she had been wearing a long skirt and sweater underneath. And she had her rapier in its sheath strapped to her hip. She slowly began to walk forward.

"Run while you still can, miss!" Mr. Nishida exclaimed with worry.

"Nah." I muttered.

"She'll do fine." Klein chimed in.

She unsheathed her rapier as the fish continued to bound towards us.

"Kirito, what are you doing?!" Mr. Nishida exclaimed. "Someone save her!"

He covered his eyes as he continued worrying about her. But Mr. Nishida really didn't have anything to worry about, as within a flash, Asuna leaped up and struck the fish. And she killed it, with pretty much just one hit. Everyone gasped in awe as the fish exploded into thousands of glittering shards.

Asuna now stood at the edge of the water with her back to us, as she sheathed her rapier. I left from my place behind my friends and walked towards her. As I walked up to me, she turned her head and saw me approaching. She fully turned around to look at me with a smile on her face. Once I reached her, I stopped walking and I gave her a confused look. Once she saw the look on my face, her smile disappeared.

"What?" she asked.

"What was the point of disguising yourself if you were just going to slay the fish like that?" I asked.

She gave me an angered look.

"It's not like I knew that that would happen!" she snapped at me.

Before I could answer, an uproar began to rise from the crowd, drawing our attention and preventing us from getting into an argument. Suddenly, players ran forward and began to surround Asuna, ultimately separating the two of us. One of them took her hand and forcefully began to shake her hand, while another fan spoke:

"You're Asuna, right? What are you doing here?"

Another fan ran up to her.

"What are you doing here?"

"This is awesome!"

Asuna just stared at all of them for a few seconds, before she finally blushed and smiled a small smile. A joyous look appeared on her face as she laughed and began accepting handshakes and compliments.

 _So, maybe she changed her mind? Maybe the publicity of being Lighting Fast Asuna isn't so bad to her anymore?_

I walked back towards Mr. Nishida and my friends. Mr. Nishida gasped with awe.

"I thought you said that you had it?" Klein asked me.

"Oh, shut up." I replied in return.

Just then, I was notified that a message had popped up in my inbox. It was from Heathcliff! I looked at Klein and Sachi.

"Are you guys getting this, too?" I asked.

They both nodded without a word. I sighed and opened the message without question.

 _November 7_ _th_ _, 2024 – Twenty Second Floor_

I laid on my bed in defeat, wearing my usual monster fighting gear. So, as it turned out, the situation back on the front lines was dire. And Heathcliff needed us back on the front lines. Our vacation was officially over. I felt someone kick me in the shin. I looked up to see Klein standing over me.

"Come on, Kiri-Dude!" he said. "You've been moping for long enough! We have to get a move on!"

"Says you!" I said as I sat up. "You're the one that should be moping!"

"Well, I…" Klein began to speak, but Sachi interrupted.

"Guys, can we put a pin in this?" she asked. "We've all accepted that our vacation is over. Just get over it."

We both looked at her, before we nodded.

"Okay." We said in unison.

Asuna walked into the room.

"We all knew that we were going to have to go back at some point. But that doesn't mean that we can't live here." She said. "So, let's just go and get this done, so we can come back."

"We were only on vacation for two weeks…" Klein replied as he looked down.

"See?" I asked as I looked back at him. "There's the Klein I know!"

"Guys, what did I just say?" Asuna asked.

We both looked at her.

"Sorry." Klein said.

"Look, Asuna's right." I said. "As much as I hate to say it, if Heathcliff needs us, he has every right to call us back. And something must have happened. Why else would he cut our vacation short?"

"Does he?" Klein asked.

Asuna sighed.

"Let's… Let's at least hear him out!" she said.

None of us said a word.

"Just come on." Asuna said. "It's time to go."

Klein let out a sigh and walked forward. Sachi and I followed his example.

"Come on. Like I said, let's just get this done so we can come back."

"Right." Klein replied.

"You got it." I chimed in.

 _Later – Twenty Second Floor: Coral Teleport Gate Plaza_

"Thanks for coming to see us off, Mr. Nishida." Klein told the old man.

"Yeah!" I chimed in. "We didn't get to spend a whole lot of time together! But it was still fun!"

"Oh, it was an honor and a privilege!" he said in return. "Actually, before I met you four, I couldn't imagine what the folks working to clear the game were like. You might as well have been from another planet!"

Mr. Nishida glanced up at the sky.

"Being trapped in here for the past two years, even if I make it back alive, I don't know if I can go back to my old job, my old life! Maybe deep down inside, I've given up hope of ever getting out."

I looked at him with sympathy.

"I figured that spending my time with a fishing pole between my mitts was the best thing for me." He said as he looked back at us. "Pretty sad, huh?"

Klein just chuckled.

"You really want to hear something really sad?" Klein asked as he slapped me on the back. "This guy doesn't know how to fish!"

I let out a sigh and decided not to say anything in response. I looked back at Mr. Nishida.

"Uh-uh." I said as I shook my head. "That isn't sad!"

"I know what you mean." Asuna replied next to me.

"Huh?" I asked as I looked at her.

"I used to feel the same as you. At first, anyway." She continued. "I felt lost and hopeless. Every night, I'd cry myself to sleep. Every day that went by in here was another day lost from my real life."

Mr. Nishida gasped with surprise but said nothing.

"So, I cried. And afterwards, I'd go and fight as hard as I could." She continued. "All I cared about was winning, getting stronger and getting to the next floor."

Asuna stopped speaking and furrowed her eyebrows, before continuing.

"But then, I was walking along, and I saw two people napping in the shade. I was _so_ mad. I told them they shouldn't waste their time like that. And then, one of them said, and I'll never forget it, "This is Aincrad's best season and today's weather is at its optimal setting!"."

A surprised look came onto my face.

 _Was she really talking about me?_

"He said it'd be such a waste to go into some dungeon on such a beautiful day. So, I tried lying down too, and you know what? I slept like a baby."

She chuckled to herself before continuing.

"When I woke up, it was evening, and he was giving me the weirdest look! Anyway, we formed our own party and I realized something. Even in a world like this, he was really living. He wasn't losing a day in the real world, he was gaining a day, here. I learned so much from him."

And then, she did something that surprised me. She hugged my arm with both of hers and pulled me closer to her.

"And by him, I mean Kirito." She said.

I looked at her, to see that she had a smile of contentment on her face. And so, I smiled myself. And then she spoke once more, surprising me.

"After that day, when I would think about the things he said and the things that I realized, I didn't have nightmares anymore! And eventually, I began to look forward to seeing him! And the real reason I put on the NerveGear that day, maybe it was to come here, to this world and meet him and all his friends! Sometimes, I feel like Kirito and his friends have given me something to live for!"

 _Okay, not going to lie. Asuna is coming off as really affectionate and it's kind of disturbing me!_

"You're still alive, aren't you?" she asked Mr. Nishida. "Maybe the NerveGear has given you something to live for, too!"

Eventually, Mr. Nishida smile and closed his eyes.

"Yeah, you're right." He said. "Yeah, you're absolutely right. Life isn't so bad here. Nope, it's actually pretty damn cool!"

He opened his eyes. Just then, Klein spoke.

"Oh, come on!"

Asuna let go of my arm as we both looked at him.

"I was there too that day and you know it! Why am I not being mentioned?!"

Asuna shrugged.

"So, what? You're not special. And yes, I know that you were there, too." She said. "But you've been so lazy lately, that it's easy for me to forget that you had something to do with it."

"Oh, that's cold!" he said.

I rolled my eyes. Mr. Nishida spoke again.

"Well, I wish there was something I could do for you all, but there it is!" he said. "Good luck and be safe!"

"Don't worry." I said. "I'll try to get better at fishing, and we'll go again one day. Just, catch a fish for us while we're gone, okay?"

Mr. Nishida smiled and nodded at us.

"Take care, okay?" Asuna said.

We all stepped onto the teleport gate.

"Teleport: Grandzam!" we all said in unison.

The blue energy of the teleportation began to overtake us and the last thing I saw was Mr. Nishida waving at us with a smile on his face.

 _Later – Fifty Fifth Floor: Grandzam_

"The recon team has been wiped out?!" Klein exclaimed with shock.

We had gotten in to see Commander Heathcliff and he had explained the situation to us.

"They were scouting for the upcoming boss fight. It was a part of twenty members, all from five different Guilds." Heathcliff explained. "Ten of them reached the center of the room, then the boss appeared. And that's when the entrance closed, cutting them off from the rest of the party."

Flashes of losing the Moonlit Black Cats and the Corvatz dilemma resonated within my brain.

"They walked into an anti-crystal zone." I said.

"Precisely. And it couldn't have been any more than five minutes or so when the door finally opened." He continued. "The room was empty. There was no trace of the ten soldiers or the boss."

We all gasped.

"You're kidding, right?" Klein asked.

"I wish I was. But now, more than ever, clearing the game should be everyone's number one priority. We're going to launch an attack of the largest group we can assemble."

"You can count on us to fight with you." I said almost immediately. "But this needs to be clear: My party's safety is _my_ number one priority. If things begin to get hairy in there, I'm going to do my best to protect them, versus the rest of the group. This isn't negotiable."

Heathcliff just smirked back at me.

"A person with something to protect is a strong ally to have. I expect a good fight from you."

 _Later – Fifty Fifth Floor: Grandzam_

After some more talking, the meeting was adjourned, and we were released. We all went down to the lower levels of the castle to mingle for a while. Klein and I were talking about just random stuff that wasn't really important, when I decided to excuse myself.

"Hey, can you excuse me for a few minutes?" I asked.

"Um, sure man." He said. "What have you got going on?"

"I just need to step out for a few. Do you know where Sachi is?"

He nodded.

"Yeah, I saw her in the lounge on this floor, talking with a few of the lower ranked Guild members. Why?"

I turned and began walking away.

"Thanks. I just need to have a chat with her before we leave."

I walked out of the room without another word. After several minutes of walking, I found the lounge that Sachi was hanging out in. I walked up to the group of girls she was talking with.

"Hey, ladies." I greeted them. "Sorry to interrupt, but can I borrow Sachi from you for a bit?"

They looked at me. Once they said nothing, Sachi spoke for them.

"No problem, Kirito." She said, before turning back to the two girls. "I'll be back in a few."

We departed from them and walked off. Eventually, we walked up to the office that Heathcliff and the highest ranking Guild members spent most of their time in. I walked over to the window and looked outside.

"So, uh, only a few more hours, huh?" Sachi asked.

"Yep." I replied.

Both of us went silent for a bit, until she spoke again.

"So, why did you bring me up here?"

"I needed to talk to you in private."

"And it couldn't wait?"

"No."

Sachi let out a sigh as she walked over and stopped by my side.

"Okay, so what is it?"

"I wanted to ask you something."

"Okay, so ask away!"

"I wanted to ask if you'd consider staying behind and not participating in the fight."

"Why?"

"We can't use teleport crystals, Sachi. And there's not telling what could happen. If you got caught and I couldn't do anything to help you, I'd never forgive myself. I'm scared of losing you."

"So, you want to take the rest of the party into a place where it's dangerous and have me wait here, where it's safe?"

"Yes."

"No. No, I will not stay here."

I looked at her with a serious look.

"Sachi, I'm ordering you to stay here."

"You can't order me around, Kirito!"

"Why? Why can't you just stay here where I know you'll be safe?!"

Sachi just looked down.

"Kirito, do you know what'd I'd do if you didn't come back from this fight?"

I shook my head.

"No. No, I do not."

She looked up at me with a sad look in her eyes.

"I think… I think that I would kill myself."

I stared at her as my eyes went wide with shock.

"Sachi!"

She looked down and sighed.

"I love you, Kirito. You're my best friend and you mean the world to me. Klein and Asuna are great friends, but I just don't know if I could live without you, if you didn't come back."

I put my hand on her shoulder.

"Sachi."

She looked up at me, still with a sad look in her eyes.

"This isn't about me, it's about you. I can handle this fight, but you can't. You're not ready for anti-crystal zones. You may never be ready."

She sniffled as she wiped her eyes.

"When are you going to learn that I can fight, Kirito? I can handle the big fights! I'm ready! And the only way you'll see that is if you let me take risks!"

I looked down.

"I just can't do it."

"Kirito, you need to learn to let go."

I looked up at her with surprise.

"What?"

She cupped my face in her hands as she looked up at me with a serious look.

"You're wrong, Kirito. This isn't about you _or_ me. You're not trying to protect me, you're trying to make amends for your failure with the Black Cats. You need to learn to let go. You saved me and there was nothing more that you could have done!"

"Sachi, I just…"

"Shh. Don't talk, just listen. Let me come with you guys. Let me fight. Let me prove myself to you!"

I said nothing. The serious look on her face shifted; she now had puppy dog eyes and a sad smile on her face.

" _Please,_ Kirito. Let me do this!"

I let out a sigh.

"Oh, all right. But Sachi, please don't make me regret this!"

She pulled away from holding my face and saluted me with a smile on her face.

"You won't regret this, boss!" she exclaimed. "I won't let you down!"

I sighed.

 _You better not,_ I thought.

 _A Couple Hours Later – Fifty Fifth Floor: Grandzam_

We all stood in one of the lounging areas in the castle, none of us having spoken for several minutes. Eventually Asuna spoke.

"Hey, have you guys ever thought about what's happening in the real world? About what's happening to our bodies while we're in here?"

Klein turned his head.

"Um, no?" he asked.

Asuna looked at him with an angered look.

"Pay attention." I said before I looked at her. "Go on."

"A few weeks after the game was launched, do you guys remember what happened?" she continued. "Most of the players suddenly went offline and stayed that way for a few hours."

I struggled to remember. The events of that day were hazy. No one answered, so she continued.

"My guess is, that's when all the player's bodies were moved to hospitals in the real world. If that's where we all are right now, in hospitals, barely being kept alive by machines, it's hard to believe that we're going to survive like that for much longer."

 _She had a point. How could we survive much longer? Our minds may be healthy, but could our bodies be wasting away without necessary vitamins and nutrients that life support can't give us?_

"So, that means it doesn't matter whether or not we clear the game anymore." I said. "Everyone here is on a time limit. And once that's up…?"

Sachi let out a sniffle, but she didn't cry.

"That's why…" Asuna continued. "That's why we have to fight to clear the game now more than ever. Because if we may not have much time left in the real world."

I sighed.

"We have to keep fighting, for the chance to get back to the real world." I said. "We don't have a choice."

Just then, someone ran into the room.

"Hey, the Commander asked some of us to round up all of the highest level players! It's time to go!"

I let out a sigh as the player walked out of the room.

"Well, we couldn't avoid this." I said. "There's just one thing missing."

The three of them gave me a strange look. I swiped down and opened my menu. I opened my inventory and equipped the Coat of Midnight. Once they saw it form on my avatar, a grin appeared on Klein's face.

" _Ooo_ , back in black, Kiri-Dude!" he said. "Looking good!"

"You moron!" I said as I looked at him. "I always wear black!"

The grin remained on his face.

"Yeah, I know that! It's just that I haven't seen you wear that in a while!"

He was right. I hadn't worn the coat since before we went on vacation. I felt someone tap my shoulder before Klein and I could possibly get into an argument. I turned my head to see Asuna standing by my side.

"Come on." She said. "No more stalling. Let's go."

 _Sometime Later – Seventy Fifth Floor: Collinia Teleport Gate Plaza_

We all emerged through the teleport gate on the Seventy Fifth Floor, in the city of Collinia, among the several dozen other players that were here. I think that there had to be at least a hundred players already here, all spread out in the plaza. We hadn't even walked forward five feet or so when someone from behind us said my name.

"Hey, Kirito! How you doing, brother?"

We turned around to see Agil standing behind us, completely decked out in his armor.

"No way." I said. "You're coming, too?"

"Really? That's the best you got? "No way?"?" he asked. "Hey man, I had to shut my shop down for a fight like this. I couldn't miss it!"

Klein decided to chime in.

"Hey, Agil. How's it going?"

"Oh, hey. What's up, Klein?" he greeted him in return. "You still single?"

"Is Kirito still bad at fishing?" he asked in return.

Everyone began laughing at that, except for me.

"Ha, ha." I muttered with sarcasm. "Very funny."

Just then, the teleporter gate activated, silencing all of us. I looked over at the gate, to see that Commander Heathcliff and the rest of our forces had arrived.

"Well, crap." Klein said. "Looks like fun's over."

Heathcliff came to a stop and lifted up the biggest teleport crystal that I had ever seen.

"Corridor." He commanded. "Open."

A portal appeared in front of him after that, as the crystal shattered. He turned to look at us.

"Well, here we go." He said.

He walked forward and disappeared through the portal. We all followed him without question. We emerged on the other side, in a dimly lit, medium sized room with a set of double doors, no doubt leading to the Boss Fight arena.

"Do you guys feel that?" Asuna asked.

"Huh?" Klein asked.

"I can feel a bad vibe in here." She said.

"Oh, yeah. Dark room?" he asked. "Check. Creepy surroundings? Check. Bad vibes? Check."

"Yeah, I feel it, too." I said, ignoring him.

All around us, I heard the chimes of people opening their menus. Eventually, Heathcliff spoke again.

"Everyone ready?"

No one said a word.

"The Knights of the Blood Oath will be out in front, distracting the boss and blocking its attacks." He continued. "In the meantime, the rest of you have to stay sharp and try to figure out its attack patterns. I won't lie. This battle will be hard, but I have faith that we can and will prevail. For our day of liberation!"

Everyone cheered. Well, almost everyone. I stood there with a serious look on my face. I just wanted to get this done.

"Hey." I heard Asuna speak as she tapped my shoulder.

I turned to look at her.

"I know you're nervous about Sachi." She said. "But don't worry. We'll get through this."

"Thanks." I said in return.

Heathcliff opened the doors to the boss room. I let out a sigh as I unsheathed both of my swords.

"Don't die, guys." I replied.

Klein chuckled as he playfully slapped me on the back.

"Same to you, buddy!" he replied in return.

"I plan on making a fortune with today's drops!" Agil said. "No way am I missing out on that!"

The doors opened all the way.

"Forward to battle!" Heathcliff exclaimed.

Everyone began to charge forward, yelling battle cries as they did. Eventually their battle cries ceased, right around the time that my party got into the room. And that's when I noticed that the room was completely empty.

Everyone looked around while remaining battle ready, waiting for anything to happen. The doors closed behind us and disappeared, so there was no getting out now. I'll just say it. I smelled an ambush. We all continued to look around.

"Nothing's happening!" one of the players said. "Where is it?"

I remained absolutely still and silent, trying to listen for anything to indicate that the boss was coming. It was at that moment that I was beginning to regret allowing Sachi to come along. I began to hear some kind of skittering sound from somewhere in the room.

"D-Do you hear that?" Asuna asked.

Eventually, Sachi gasped with fright.

"Guys…" she said in a fearful tone. "It's up there!"

No one said a word for a split second, then Asuna spoke.

"She's right! Up there!"

We all looked up and saw it. It was a centipede, made entirely out of bones. It had to be at least more than ten feet in length. We hadn't noticed it because it had been crawling around on the ceiling the whole time we had been in the room. A good amount of the players began to freak out, Sachi included.

"It's the Skull…" Klein started to speak.

"Reaper." I finished speaking for him.

Its four eyes lit up with a red color, as it's name tag appeared, along with five HP bars.

"Stay away from it!" Heathcliff exclaimed.

The Skull Reaper leaped off of the ceiling and began to descend towards us. I don't know why, but I just now got a feeling. I got the feeling that we were in the endgame now.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for the chapter to today! Thanks for reading this extra-long chapter!

* I hope you enjoyed the original scenes that I added in this adaptation of Episode Thirteen. If you guys didn't know, the scene where Kirito comforts Asuna is really build up to their eventual romance.

* Speaking of Asuna, I replaced her with Sachi in this adaptation, whereas in the Anime, he tried to talk Asuna into staying behind. I replaced her with Sachi because having Asuna be the one he tried to convince to stay behind didn't really make sense. I hope you guys understand that.

* And one last thing, I know that in the Anime, Kirito doesn't wear the Coat of Midnight often, because it makes him stand out as a beater. But in my version, he isn't really ashamed of being a beater (not that he was ashamed of it in the Anime) so he wore it most of the time. So, there's that.

* Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this one, no review responses this time and I'm going to go. So, with that, expect the next chapter hopefully soon, have a good day and bye!

Next Chapter: The Aincrad Arc comes to an end with the usual group of heroes fighting to clear the game. After a devastating battle, Kirito must expose Commander Heathcliff for what he really is.


	14. Chapter 14: The End of the World

Chapter 14: The End of the World

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Fourteen! I was really excited to finally begin writing this adaptation and it did take a while to write, so I hope you all enjoy! And who knows? This chapter may be the longest, at least in terms of the Aincrad Arc.

* Also, hold on to your butts, because this chapter will be vastly different from the source material! You may spot a few similarities between the two, but this is all mostly original content on my part!

* But anyway, again, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! I'm not going to say anything else, so let's just get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _November 7_ _th_ _, 2024 – Seventy Fifth Floor: Dungeon_

"Spread out!" Heathcliff exclaimed as The Skull Reaper descended from the ceiling.

Several people were freaking out and were frozen, too scared to move. Seeing as no one else spoke, I began to.

"This way!" I exclaimed as I waved at them. "Hurry, run!"

They began moving, just as The Skull Reaper landed behind them. It was too late. As they ran, The Skull Reaper struck them across their backs, sending them flying through the air. Klein and I moved in an attempt to catch them, but it didn't matter. As they soared through the air, they're bodies shattered into thousands of glittering shards before we could catch them.

Sweat began to bead up on my forehead as I realized what had happened. Sachi and Asuna gasped as this happened.

 _The boss is capable of one-hit kills?_

"That was one hit!" Klein exclaimed as if he had read my thoughts.

"Man, we are so dead!" Agil replied behind me.

Meanwhile, The Skull Reaper began to prep for another attack. Within seconds, it began to charge us again. And not so surprisingly at this point, several players began to run from it, since we couldn't retreat.

The Skull Reaper closed in on a player and it was beginning to look like it would score a third kill, when surprisingly, Heathcliff flawlessly deflected the strike with his shield. But it didn't matter still.

The Skull Reaper simply curved one of its scythes around the shield and struck the player that Heathcliff had attempted to protect, killing him just as easily as it had the first two players that we had lost at the start. Interestingly enough, The Skull Reaper just ignored Heathcliff and moved around him.

"We can't even get close enough to hit the damn thing!" Agil exclaimed as we watched it move.

I moved forward regardless of what we had just seen.

"Kirito!" Sachi cried with worry.

I ignored her as I came to the aid of another player.

"Look out!" I exclaimed as I blocked The Skull Reaper's strike.

I struggled to keep The Skull Reaper's attack at bay, but I somehow managed to do so for a few seconds.

 _It's too strong!_

It prepared to strike again and once again, Heathcliff blocked the impending strike. The Skull Reaper immediately prepared another strike and this time, my entire party, as well as Agil, came to my aid. Sachi helped me block the strike.

"If we block it together, we stand a chance!" she said.

I slumped down a little bit as The Skull Reaper retracted its limb. Sachi grabbed my arm and pulled me up.

"Kirito, come on!"

"No!" I exclaimed without turning to face her. "Just stay out of its sight! Don't let it touch you!"

I didn't wait for her to respond as I shouted out a command.

"Asuna, help me with the scythes!"

"Right!" she exclaimed as she ran to my side.

"Everyone else, attack it from the sides!" I exclaimed.

"You heard the man!" Agil exclaimed.

I heard several of the players comply and move forward. The Skull Reaper began taking small amounts of damage and become a bit too distracted to attack.

"Hold still baby!" Agil exclaimed as he charged forward.

The Skull Reaper surprised me by using its tail to swipe and launch two players across the room, killing them instantly.

"Damn you!" Agil exclaimed.

I was surprised once again when I turned my head to see Sachi entering the fight, despite my orders to do the opposite.

"Sachi!" I exclaimed. "What are you doing?! Get out of its sight!"

"Kiri-Dude, now isn't the time!" Klein exclaimed.

I let out a growl.

"Right!" I said as I returned to handling the scythes with Asuna and now Sachi as well.

The Skull Reaper let out a growl or a roar, as it stretched itself upwards, likely preparing for another attack. I just looked up in awe at its HP bars, to see that we had barely caused its health to diminish.

"Ready, guys?" I asked. "Again!"

We got ready to get back to work on its scythes as it descended for another attack. However, The Skull Reaper quickly traveled across the room to Heathcliff, where he easily blocked its strike. As it did that, Klein ran underneath The Skull Reaper and began striking its underside, as Agil jumped up and used his axe on its back.

Asuna, Sachi and I ran back to the front of The Skull Reaper to work on its scythes again. It tried to strike again, but we blocked it with our swords. Once it lowered itself, we caught a glimpse of its face and struck it while we could. While we had it distracted, several shield and one-handed sword users worked on its legs.

However, one of them got hit and died immediately. The Skull Reaper once again used one of its scythes in an attempt to attack Heathcliff and not so surprisingly at this point, he blocked it with his shield again. Once it retracted the scythe, Heathcliff lowered his shield and struck.

I noticed that Klein charged the boss again. He jumped through the air and successfully struck it across one of its legs. I noticed that we had almost worn it down completely. I took a breath as I grinned and backed up.

"It's almost dead, guys!" I said. "Let's just take a bit of a breather! Just a few seconds!"

Asuna followed my example and backed up away from The Skull Reaper for a few seconds. Well, everyone in my party fell back, except for Sachi, who remained up front with the others, combating the boss.

"Sachi, what are you doing?!" I exclaimed. "Retreat! We almost have it! We can take a short break before we kill it!"

Sachi turned her head to look at me.

"No, I can do this, Kirito!" she exclaimed. "I can handle this fight! I can prove myself to you!"

Turning her head to look at me was Sachi's mistake. The Skull Reaper prepared to strike again as she looked at me.

"Sachi! Watch out!" I screamed.

She turned, saw that the boss was about to strike, shrieked out in fear and quickly struck The Skull Reaper with her sword. Sure, she was able to deliver the final blow, but The Skull Reaper was given enough time to deliver a blow of its own. Before The Skull Reaper died, it was able to strike Sachi, sending her flying across the room. My swords fell from my hands as I watched her get flung.

"Sachi! No!" I exclaimed as I ran over to where she landed.

As I got closer to her motionless form, I focused on her and saw that her HP bar was in the yellow zone – and it was slowly being depleted. I had no idea how she was able to survive a blow and all of the others didn't; maybe since it technically started the "dying process" as it struck Sachi, it was weaker than normal?

The point was I could still save her, if I could give her a healing potion quickly enough. And also, why was her HP slowly being depleted? Was it possible that The Skull Reaper was capable of delivering a poisonous strike? Or a strike that caused HP degradation? I finally reached her and sat down next to her, as I gently pulled her up, so that her head rested in my lap.

"Sachi, don't worry!" I tried to comfort her the best I could, speaking in a worried tone. "Just hold on, it'll be okay!"

I quickly opened my inventory and equipped a healing potion.

"Here." I said as I pushed the potion towards her lips. "Drink this!"

But to my surprise, Sachi lifted her hand up and pushed the potion away.

"Sachi, what are you doing? Let me give you the potion!"

She just looked up at me with a sad smile.

"It's alright, Kirito." She said in a hushed tone. "I'm not afraid of dying anymore."

I looked down at her as I threatened to start crying.

"Please." I said as I pushed the potion towards her lips once more. "Just take it!"

She refused to take it once again.

"Kirito, there isn't much time left. So, listen to what I have to say."

I didn't say anything in return, so she continued to speak.

"Thank you, Kirito."

"Thank you?" I asked. "Thank you for what?"

"Thank you for making these last two years worth living through. Just being with you and your friends have made these last two years worth living."

"Don't say that! You're going to be fine, Sachi! Now, please just take the potion!"

I tried to force it to her lips again, but she stopped me once again.

"Kirito, promise me something."

I didn't say anything, I only allowed her to keep talking.

"You have to promise me that you'll beat this game, Kirito. If not for me, for everyone else here."

I felt like I was going to cry now as my grip on Sachi tightened.

"Sachi, I don't want you to go!" I exclaimed as tears began to run down my cheeks.

Sachi only smiled up at me.

"Don't be sad, Kirito. Besides, we'll meet again one day, where the angels learn to fly!"

And then, the unthinkable happened. Sachi's form began to glitch out, before she ultimately exploded into thousands of glittering shards. I was awestruck. I refused to move, and I refused to think. I felt the healing potion slip from my fingers as I stared at the spot in which Sachi had disappeared. I could feel the tears coming. And I couldn't control them. I heard footsteps behind me, which eventually stopped.

"Kirito?" I heard Asuna say my name.

I looked up at her as tears streamed down my face.

"You were right. You said that I couldn't protect her on my own and you were right." I said. "Even with your guys' help, I still couldn't protect her!"

Asuna just looked at me sympathetically, with a sad look in her eyes. I turned away from her and pulled one of my knees up to my chest. I rested my chin on my knees, and I covered my mouth and nose with my hands as the tears kept coming. Eventually, I heard Asuna walk away from me. Memories of the Black Cats' deaths and now Sachi's death as well flashed through my brain.

I had failed to protect her. I had lied to her, even. I told her that everything would be fine and that I would protect her, and she died anyway. I lied. And right now, I didn't know what to do with myself. I sort of understood now how Asuna had felt when Yui disappeared. I understand how sad she was now, because I was experiencing that sadness myself.

I don't know how much time even passed of me just sitting there, overridden with guilt. It felt like hours had gone by, but in reality, it probably hadn't even been more than a minute or so. I overheard Klein speak as I began to come out of my trance.

"How many did we lose?"

I heard someone open their menu.

"Fifteen." Asuna eventually spoke. "We lost fifteen players today."

No one said a word for a few seconds.

"Oh my God." Agil eventually spoke in a hushed whisper that I could just barely hear.

Silence swept throughout the room again.

"We still have twenty five floors to go!" Klein said in disbelief.

"Twenty five more floors?" Asuna asked with disbelief as well.

"How the hell are we going to even make it that far?" Agil chimed in once again.

There were murmurs all around the room by this point, but no one had the guts to actually start up a conversation. I finally came out of my daze. I wanted to believe that this was all just a bad dream but, how could I? Sachi was really dead. And it was all my fault. I looked over at Commander Heathcliff, to see that he was the only one of us still standing up.

I focused in on him and saw his HP bar. I was disturbed. What disturbed me is that Heathcliff's HP was still in the green zone. In fact, if I recalled correctly, he was the only one of us who hadn't broken a sweat during the fight. Just then, my mind flashed back to when Heathcliff and I dueled some time ago.

Even though I had fought valiantly, he had still beat me, without his HP going into the yellow zone, mind you. And once again, his HP hadn't left the green zone here, either. In fact, there was apparently no recorded evidence of Heathcliff's HP bar falling into the yellow zone.

But, why? I don't care how strong you are in SAO, we all fall into the yellow zone at some point. It didn't really make sense for his HP to always stay in the green zone. I racked my brain for a suitable explanation. That's when it suddenly hit me.

 _What if it was impossible for Heathcliff's HP to fall into the yellow zone? What if the code of the game prevented it?_

That made me really start to think. If Heathcliff's HP was being controlled by the coding of the game, there was only one person – or player, rather, that could have control over that: Akihiko Kayaba. My thoughts shifted from Heathcliff back to Sachi. I was angry with myself.

 _Why did I allow her to come along?_ _If she had just stayed behind, this would never have happened!_

I looked back at Heathcliff and my thoughts shifted once again.

 _No, it's Heathcliff's fault! If he had never have called us back, Sachi would still be alive!_

I looked down at the floor. Heathcliff's HP couldn't fall into the yellow zone. No, Kayaba's HP couldn't fall into the yellow zone! There wasn't another possibility. Heathcliff had to be Kayaba, because Kayaba has the biggest influence on the game, therefore he could prevent his HP from slipping out of the green zone. Well, it was just a hunch, but I did believe that I was right.

I finally stood up from where I had been sitting and walked back over to where I had dropped my swords. I was only going off a hunch here. So, if I was wrong, I would most likely go to prison for attempting to harm my superior and likely, Asuna and Klein would never want to see or talk to me again. I reached down and picked up both of my swords, sheathing one while keeping other in my hand. Asuna looked up at me.

"Kirito, what are you doing?" she asked.

I ignored her and turned to look at Heathcliff, who hadn't noticed me yet. I took a deep breath.

 _No one else will die because of Kayaba's stupid game!_

I started running towards Heathcliff as I charged my sword skill. However, it didn't take long for Heathcliff to notice, as he turned to face me with a surprised look on his face. I let out an angry exclaim as I struck him. Just as I had expected, as my strike landed, it was blocked and the purple "Immortal Object" tag popped up.

"Kirito, what the hell are you…" Klein began to speak, but he must have seen the tag too, as he cut himself off. "…Doing?"

I lowered my sword, as Heathcliff just looked at me with a serious look on his face.

"Did I just see what I think I just saw?" Asuna asked as she ran up to me.

The tag above Heathcliff's head disappeared at this point. The next thing I knew, Klein appeared at my side as well.

"Commander, what the hell's going on?" he asked.

Before he could answer, I spoke.

"I think I have an answer to that. The reason the "Commander's" HP can never hit yellow is because he's protected by the system!"

I heard multiple gasps of shock around us. I continued to look at Heathcliff.

"You know, ever since day one, something's always bugged me about this whole thing." I said. "I was always wondering, "Where is he hiding while he watches us and controls everything in this world?" Well, the answer's pretty simple. It's basic psychology. In fact, it's so simple that every kid knows it. There's nothing more boring than watching someone else play an RPG."

I narrowed my eyes at Heathcliff, before I continued to speak.

"Isn't that right, Akihiko Kayaba?"

Everyone in the room gasped with shock, including Asuna and Klein. Heathcliff continued to stare at me, before eventually speaking.

"Just for my curiosity's sake, would you mind telling me how you figured it out?"

"The first time I knew something was up, was during our duel." I replied.

As I spoke about the duel, my mind flashed back to it once again.

"Remember when you turned the tables on me?" I asked. "That move was way too fast."

Heathcliff only looked down as he closed his eyes and smiled.

"Yes, I thought so. It was a mistake to think that would go unnoticed by you." He said. "But you were so strong and so fast, the only choice I had was to engage the system's assist-mode."

There were several gasps once again. I wasn't done yet, though.

"And there's the fact that there's no apparent evidence of your HP slipping into the yellow zone." I said. "I took that fact and I considered that only Akihiko Kayaba could have the influence on the game to keep his HP from slipping below the green zone. So, are you or are you not Akihiko Kayaba?"

He looked around himself, before he finally looked back at me.

"Yes, I am Akihiko Kayaba." He said. "And now that my identity's been revealed, it should come as no surprise that I am the final boss on the top floor."

Everyone let out gasps of surprise, Klein and Asuna included. I was sort of surprised myself for some reason, not about Kayaba being the final boss, but the fact that Heathcliff was actually Kayaba surprised me. I don't know why, but I expected to be wrong. But the fact that Kayaba was the final boss, it made sense to me. I mean, think about it. Why wouldn't Akihiko Kayaba, the creator of Sword Art Online, be the final boss? It only made sense.

"So, the strongest player in the whole game ends up being the final boss?" I asked. "Kinda cliché, isn't it?"

Kayaba just chuckled.

"Actually, I kind of like that angle. One thing's for sure. I always thought that you'd be the one standing before me at the very end." He said. "You know, duel-wielding is a rare kind of skill only given to the player with the fastest reaction time. He's the hero of this story and the one who rises up to challenge the demon king."

He smirked at me while he retained a serious look.

"But you, the power you displayed exceeded my expectations." He continued. "I guess these unexpected twists and turns are what makes MMORPGs so thrilling to play."

One of the players behind Kayaba began fidgeting.

"Our loyalty… Our hope…" he said. "How dare you?! How dare you?!"

The player leaped through the air and attempted to strike Kayaba down, forgetting that he was considered by the system to be an Immortal Object.

"How dare you?!"

Then, Kayaba did something that surprised us. He opened his menu before the player could land the strike and pressed a button. The player's form suddenly glitch and fell out of the air, with a paralysis symbol appearing next to his HP bar.

"Paralysis?" I asked myself as I watched what happened next.

Suddenly, people all around the room began to drop to the floor, except for me.

"Kirito…" Asuna spoke.

"Can't move!" Klein finished for her.

 _Kayaba had paralyzed them all?_

I continued looking at Kayaba.

"So, what's the plan now?" I asked. "Are you going to kill everyone here and cover it up or something?"

"Oh God, no. That wouldn't be sporting of me, now would it? No, I have a better idea. I'm going to head for the top floor and wait for all of you there." He said. "I'll be inside the Ruby Palace. It's a shame I have to leave you all so soon, I've spent lots of time developing The Knights of the Blood Oath and other elite players. Oh, well."

He chuckled.

"You're all strong, so I'm sure you'll reach me. Eventually, that is. But before I go…"

He slammed his sword and shield into the ground.

"Kirito, I feel you deserve some sort of reward for discovering my identity. So, I'll give you a chance."

"A chance for what?"

"To fight me one-on-one. Right here, right now. Oh, and my immortality will be deactivated. Defeat me and you clear the game. And all of the players will be able to log out from this world, no strings attached. What do you say?"

I wanted to immediately say yes. I was still angry and upset about Sachi's death and now I blamed Heathcliff/Kayaba for it. But I was unsure about what do.

 _Could I really defeat him?_

"Don't do it, Kirito!" Asuna said from her spot on the floor.

"You'll get yourself killed!" Klein exclaimed.

"We should fall back and devise a new strategy!" Asuna spoke again.

I just stood there, my face dripping with sweat as flashes ran through my head. I saw the first day all over again. I saw mass panic in the plaza. I saw myself saving Diabel from death during our very first boss fight. I saw myself abandoning Klein and Asuna that day. I started to get angry as I saw the deaths of the Moonlit Black Cats and now recently, Sachi's death.

I gritted my teeth in anger. I thought back to what Asuna had said before we left. How in the real world, our bodies must be barely hanging on to life. If that really was the case, then we couldn't stay here in Aincrad for much longer.

 _You have to promise me that you'll beat this game, Kirito. If not for me, for everyone else here,_ Sachi's words rang in my mind.

She was right. Sachi was right. I had to beat the game. I had to fight Kayaba and win. As I stood there, flashes of Kuradeel murdering Godfree and almost killing me appeared in my head, as well as Corvatz almost dying and losing Yui. I looked up at Kayaba.

"I accept your challenge." I said. "Let's finish this."

"Kirito!" Asuna exclaimed.

"Don't!" Klein chimed in.

"Kirito, brother! Don't do this!" Agil chimed in as well.

I stepped forward as I sighed. I turned around to face them with a sad smile on my face.

"I'm sorry guys. I have to do this." I said. "I wish that there was another way, but I just can't keep running away. And besides, we may be running out of time in the real world."

I turned back to Kayaba.

 _I'm going to win,_ I thought. _I have to. For Sachi and for everyone else still here!_

"Before we begin, is it too much to ask for you to allow my friends to move again?" I asked. "I want to say goodbye."

He stared back at me, before he opened his menu.

"I'll give you one minute." He said. "Better make it snappy, Kirito."

I turned around just as Klein and Asuna stood up, both of them being able to move again. Neither of them looked happy, though. I looked over at Agil, to see that he was still paralyzed.

"Agil, thanks for supporting all the players in the game since day one." I said. "I knew. You act like you're all about the money, but you're a hell of a guy, you know that?"

I turned to look at Klein.

"Klein, in the alley that day, you told me that I didn't have to go at the game alone." I said. "You showed me another way. Thank you."

Tears began to stream down his cheeks.

"God Damn you, Kirito!" he exclaimed. "You're going to win, so that I can buy you dinner on the other side to pay you back!"

I grinned.

"You bet, Klein." I said, as I turned to Asuna.

She looked like she was about to cry herself. I looked down as I sighed.

"Asuna, I'm sorry. I'm sorry that we never got along and that we never really got to be friends." I said as I looked back up at her. "I deeply regret not getting along with you every day. I really do."

She sniffled and then did something that surprised me. She ran forward and hugged me, resting her chin on my shoulder.

"Y-You were the b-best friend," she hiccuped with her words as she began to sob. "T-That I n-never had!"

I smiled as I rubbed her back.

"Yeah, I'm gonna miss you, too."

Kayaba cleared his throat from behind me.

"Come on, Kirito!" he called out. "Come face your destiny!"

I pulled away from Asuna and looked at her face, tears still running down her cheeks. I used my thumb to wipe her tears away.

"It's time for me to go." I whispered. "I'm sorry."

She continued to sniffle as she looked back at me.

"Don't you dare die!" she whispered back.

I grinned at her.

"I won't." I said. "Promise."

And with that, I turned back around and walked towards Kayaba as I unsheathed my other sword. I stopped a few feet from him and narrowed my eyes.

"If it's okay, I have a final request to make." I replied.

"What is it?" he asked.

"If I die here, today, I want you to promise me that my friends will see the real world again." I said. "Agil, Klein and Asuna, I want them to be able to see their families again one day. I think it's only fair."

"Okay." He said as he closed his eyes. "I'll see what I can do."

"No! I need to hear you say it!" I exclaimed. "Promise me, damn it!"

Kayaba opened his eyes.

"Okay, you have my word." He said.

He opened his menu and pressed a button. The "Changed into Mortal Object" tag appeared, and he prepared to unsheathe his sword. He prepared his sword and shield for the coming battle.

 _This isn't some in-game duel. It's a fight to the death. It's a death game. That's fine with me!_

Time seemed to slow down for me. Something suddenly hit me. I was angry. But I realized that if I fought with anger, I wouldn't win.

 _My anger wouldn't get me anywhere. I couldn't solely rely on my strength this time. I have to be smart about this. I have to use my brain if I expect to win._

I ran forward as the battle began and tried to strike first. And because of that, I earned a cut across my cheek. Kayaba blocked my strike with his shield and caught the side of my face with his blade. I lost a very small amount of HP, but I lost some, nonetheless.

 _Damn,_ I thought. _I guess that's what I get for being eager for battle!_ _I have to be more careful!_

Kayaba prepared to strike, and I tried to dodge. Although I did manage to dodge a strike to the chest, he his blade caught me in the arm.

 _He can block whatever I throw at him, 'cause he designed the dual wielding skill! And he knows all of its combos! All the more reason why I have to defeat him with my own power! I can't use sword skills! I have to use my intelligence to win!_

I ran forward, jumped and flipped over him, only to get cut across the back of my coat. I turned around and began attempting to strike him. He blocked all of my strikes with his shield. He prepared to strike once again, and I sidestepped in an effort to try to strike him. He dodged my strike and cut across my coat once more.

I kept pushing to try to strike him. I managed to lay a few strikes on him, just barely depleting a minuscule fraction of his HP, but he ultimately landed three times the amount of strikes that I had, easily. I charged my sword skill on both swords at once and unleashed a combo – which was ultimately blocked by Kayaba's shield.

During this instance, when one of my swords made contact with his shield, I was shocked when the tip of the sword cracked and broke off from the rest of the sword. I scowled as I threw the now broken sword aside and continued to fight. I thought about trying to get behind him again. I jumped and flipped over him, but once again failed to land a strike as he landed several across my back once again.

I wasn't going to let myself die because of the fact that I couldn't duel wield anymore. I could still fight with just one sword. If anything, I had to try.

 _Asuna_

Before the fight began, I heard Klein quickly open his menu and frantically whisper something, followed by the sound of something shattering. When I asked what that was, he dismissed my question, telling me not to worry about it. Once the fight actually began, I immediately noticed something was wrong. Kirito was taking strike after strike from Akihiko Kayaba. In fact, it looked like he was hardly trying to fight back at all! I began to get really worried once one of his swords broke. It really made me start to think:

 _Could Kirito, The Black Swordsman, really be defeated?_

As the fight progressed, Kirito continued doing his best to avoid strikes from Kayaba, most of the time failing to avoid those strikes. He as well attempted to land aerial strikes on Kayaba, flipping over him, but most of the time Kayaba struck him just as easily as he did while Kirito was on the ground.

"What the hell is he doing?" Klein asked next to me.

"It's like he's not even trying…" I said in response.

"He's killing himself! He's going to get himself killed!" he exclaimed. "Damn it, Kirito! Stop screwing around and fight back already!"

"Pipe down!" I said. "You'll distract him and really get him killed!"

But Kirito kept fighting in the way that he had been. He kept taking strike after strike. And then the unthinkable happened. Kirito made one last attempt to strike Kayaba. He sprinted forward and charged his sword skill, before attempting to strike. However, Kayaba quickly sidestepped and delivered a long cut across Kirito's back.

Kirito continued running for a second or two, before coming to a stop a few feet away from Kayaba. His sword fell from his grip and he dropped to his knees, before collapsing onto the floor. Kayaba turned his back on Kirito and that's when I saw it: Kirito's form shattered into thousands of glittering shards. My eyes went wide with shock as it felt like my heart stopped.

 _Kirito was dead? It can't be!_

"No way…" Klein spoke with disbelief. "It's not possible!"

Kayaba only grinned as he looked on at all of us.

"Is that it?" he asked. "That was almost too easy!"

I just stared on as my eyes stung, feeling as though I was going to cry. I fell down onto my knees as the tears began to come.

"What the hell was he thinking?!" Klein asked from next to me, sounding as though he was close to crying himself. "Was he trying to get himself killed?!"

Tears began to stream down my cheeks, and I let out a hiccup before I began to sob. I didn't want Kirito to do this, but I had been so confident that he could beat Kayaba. How could I have been so wrong? I just continued sitting there as the tears kept coming. That is, until I felt someone tapping my shoulder.

"Asuna!" Klein replied in a hushed tone. "Look!"

"What?" I asked as I looked up at him, still crying.

"Look!" he repeated as he pointed across the room.

I looked up as I sniffled and wiped the tears away. So, when the fight started, a sort of mist covered the floor of the room. And what I saw shocked me. Despite seeing his form shatter, I saw Kirito slowly rising from the floor out of the mist, slowly and quietly reaching for his sword as he did.

But something was odd about Kirito. The Coat of Midnight that he had been wearing was gone. That's when it hit me: Kirito had used the strategy that Kains and Yolko had used when they faked their deaths!

"Kirito!" I whispered with a look of hope now on my face.

"That son of a bitch!" Klein whispered back. "That smart son of a bitch! He used his coat's destruction to make it look like he had died!"

No one in the room said a word. Besides, anything above a whisper about what was happening could blow Kirito's cover.

 _Kirito_

 _One Minute Earlier_

I continued fighting Kayaba while keeping an eye on The Coat of Midnight's durability bar. Once I noticed that it was about to run out, I got ready for my final attack. I sprinted towards Kayaba as I charged my sword skill. And he reacted just as I thought he would. He quickly sidestepped and as I ran past him, he struck me down the back with his sword. My coat's durability was about to run out completely.

I came to a stop and fell onto my knees and allowed my sword to fall from my hand. I collapsed onto the floor and second or two later, my coat shattered.

"No!" I heard Klein speak. "It's not possible!"

"Is that it?" Kayaba spoke a second or two later. "That was almost too easy!"

 _That's because I deceived you, Kayaba!_

Several seconds passed before someone spoke again.

"What the hell was he thinking?!" Klein asked, sounding as though he were going to cry. "Was he trying to get himself killed?!"

A couple more seconds passed, and I began to hear the sound of sobbing, which told me that my plan had worked. Everyone believed that I had died! After several more seconds passed, I began to slowly and quietly get up, reaching for my sword as I did. Once I had my sword in hand, I quietly rose to my feet. I cautiously and slowly turned around, to see that Kayaba had his back to me. I slowly began to sneak up on him. Once I reached him, I made my move.

"You should work on your aim." I whispered to him.

"Huh?" Kayaba let out a gasp of surprise as he turned to face me.

Once he was facing me, I wasted no time at all. I had caught him off guard and so, I put my sword through his chest, completely draining the rest of his HP. He stared down at me as his HP drained.

"Y-You treacherous little snake!" he said to me, before his form shattered into thousands of glittering shards.

Once Kayaba was gone, I continued standing there, with my sword outstretched. Sweat covered my face as my heart pounded in my chest. I don't know why my heart was beating so fast, I guess that I was surprised that I actually won.

 _Did I win? Did I actually beat Akihiko Kayaba?_

I took a few breaths, trying to calm myself down. That's when I heard the cheers from all around me. I finally allowed myself to drop my sword and look around the room. Asuna and Klein ran over to me.

"You did it, buddy!" Klein said as he reached me and clapped me on the shoulder. "Oh my God, I can't believe you actually did it!"

I turned to look at Asuna, who looked back at me with puffy, red eyes.

"Um, hey, Asuna." I said in the most awkward tone imaginable.

She sniffled, before speaking.

"You idiot!" she exclaimed as she slugged me in the arm. "What were you thinking?!"

"Yeah, man!" Klein chimed in. "What did you do?"

I looked back at him.

"I knew that I couldn't beat Kayaba with my strength alone." I said. "So, I used my brain. I deceived him. I…"

Just then, an announcement popped up that interrupted me. And it was an audio announcement, so everyone in the room could probably hear it.

"On November 7th, at 2:55 PM, the game has been cleared." An automated female voice announced. "Repeat, the game has been cleared."

I looked down at the ground and I smiled.

"I actually did it." I said. "I cleared the game. It's over! It's finally over."

"Hey, Kirito, what the hell's going on?" Klein asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked without looking up.

"Look at yourself!" he said. "Something weird is going on!"

I looked at my hands, to see that they were glowing with a white light. I looked up at Klein to see that he was glowing with a white light as well.

"Look at me?" I asked. "Look at you!"

I looked over at Asuna, just to check to see if she was glowing too, and sure enough, she was.

"Kirito, what's happening?" Asuna asked, as her form completely become enveloped in white light, so I could no longer make out any feature of hers.

"Kiri-Dude, what do we do?!" Klein asked in a panic-stricken tone.

I looked over at him, to see that just like Asuna, he was completely enveloped in white light. I looked around us, to see that all of the other players in the room were the exact same way. I sighed as I looked down.

"I don't know." I said in an honest tone.

I continued standing there, as my vision become overtaken by white.

 _Above Aincrad_

When I was able to see normally again, I noticed that I was in the sky, up above the clouds. I noticed that the wind was blowing as well. I looked down at the ground, if you could even call it that. The "ground" was completely transparent, I could see the clouds below. The last thing worth mentioning is that it looked like the sun was setting in the sky.

"Where am I?" I asked out loud.

I turned around, to see that I wasn't alone here. Klein, Agil, Asuna and everyone else were here with me.

"Where are we?" I asked.

I didn't get an answer.

"Guys?" I asked.

I turned to look at Klein, who seemed to be frozen in place.

"Klein, what's the matter with you?" I asked. "Are you lagging?"

When he still didn't respond, I put my hand up in front of his face and snapped my fingers several times. No response still. I sighed as I turned to look at Asuna, who seemed to be frozen as well.

"Asuna?" I said her name.

I didn't get a response.

"Asuna!" I exclaimed, as I grabbed her shoulders and began to shake her.

She suddenly blinked and looked at me.

"Hey, watch it, Kirito!" she exclaimed.

"Wait, you can hear me?" I asked as I retracted my hands.

"Of course, I can!"

"Then why didn't you answer me when I said your name before?"

She shrugged.

"I don't know. I tried to, but I couldn't move there for a while."

"Where do you think we are?" I asked as I looked around again.

She walked around as I continued looking around.

"I don't know… Why can't any of our friends move?" she asked.

I walked back up to Klein, whom was still frozen in place. I looked around once more, before I lost my cool a bit.

"What is wrong with everyone?!" I exclaimed. "What is going on here?!"

Before Asuna had the chance to answer, someone else answered.

"Your friends are fine."

I turned around to see Akihiko Kayaba standing several feet away from us. And it was Akihiko Kayaba, _not_ Heathcliff. He was dressed like he usually was in all of the pictures that I had seen of him in real life, wearing pants, a dress shirt, dress shoes and a lab coat.

"Akihiko Kayaba." I said upon seeing him.

"Hello, Kirito." He said. "Congratulations. That was quite a strategy."

I looked down.

"Kayaba, there was no other way for me to win." I said. "I'm sorry for deceiving you."

He then said something that surprised me.

"No, no, no. Adaptability is an admirable trait."

We all went silent after that, before I summoned the courage to speak.

"So, where are we?"

"It's a stunning view, isn't it?" he asked in return.

I looked back out at our surroundings.

"Yes." Asuna answered this time. "Yes, it is."

"What is this?" I asked.

Kayaba ignored my question.

"At Argus Headquarters, the SAO mainframe is in a room five floors below street level." He said. "And starting here pretty soon, it will begin deleting all of the data from its drives. Soon, everything in this world will disappear forever."

Asuna and I didn't utter a word for a few seconds.

"And all the players?" she eventually asked. "What happens to them? What happens to _us_?"

"You don't have to worry about them." He spoke as he opened his menu, before a list appeared. "The 6,147 players who survived the game up to now will be safely logged out once the data deletion process is completed."

The list disappeared.

"Kayaba, just answer one question for me." I said.

He turned his head to look at me.

"Where are we? Why are we here? What is this place?"

He turned away once again.

"You could consider this to be the final "stage" of SAO." He said at last.

"Final "stage"? What do you mean?" Asuna asked.

"The final stage consists of a final, peaceful sunset. And I brought you all here to give you a chance."

"A chance?" I asked. "A chance for what?"

"You and your friends have become really close in the last several months of the game. I brought you all here for a chance. A chance to spend the final moments of SAO together and to watch the sunset. I think you all deserve to see a happy ending after all you've been through."

That's when something hit me. I gritted my teeth with anger.

"What about the four thousand people who died?" I asked. "What about Sachi?!"

I felt Asuna put her hand on my shoulder in an attempt to comfort me.

"I wasn't lying when I spoke about the matter on day one. Anyone who died, their minds will never return." He said. "Any world real or virtual, once you're dead, you're gone."

I gritted my teeth once more and fought the urge to cry. I don't know why I had to ask; I already knew the answer.

"Why?" I asked. "Why did you do this?!"

"That's… a good question." He spoke, as if he himself didn't know the answer. "It's been so long; I've forgotten the reason. Isn't that strange? Even before I developed a system for the full-dive environment, I dreamed of this."

"Dreamed of what?" Asuna asked with confusion in her voice.

"A castle in a world that wasn't governed by earthly laws and restrictions. I poured my life into making that world a reality. I created this world and I got to see something that surpassed anything I could have imagined for it."

He turned to look at us once more.

"My steel castle, floating in the sky, I don't remember how old I was when I became obsessed with it. I wanted to leave the earth, to fly to that castle! I wanted that more than anything else, for as long as I can remember."

I only looked back at him, patiently waiting for him to continue.

"You know what, Kirito? I want to believe it's still out there. That somewhere, in some other world, my castle is still standing, taller than ever."

I don't know why, but at this point, my anger was gone, and I was looking at Kayaba with sympathy.

"Yeah, I bet it still is." I said. "Somewhere."

"Mmm-Hmm." Asuna grunted in agreement.

Silence fell between us three now. Eventually, he spoke once more.

"Well then, I should probably get going now."

I looked over at him as he turned and began to walk away from us.

"Wait!" I exclaimed as I turned in his direction and put my hand out. "What are we supposed to do here?"

Kayaba stopped in his tracks. He turned around to face us. And what I saw surprised me. He had a rare smile on his face. And it looked like he was content with what was happening.

"Do exactly what I told you to do. Once I'm gone, all of your friends will be able to function normally again. Enjoy your final moments together in SAO." He said. "Goodbye, Kirito, Asuna. Congratulations on clearing the game."

He turned his head back, so he was facing in the direction he was headed, and he started walking again. And then his form turned to smoke. I was sort of angry, I suppose. He never even acknowledged Sachi. But ultimately, I didn't really care about it. Kayaba wasn't lying, though. Once he disappeared, I heard everyone in the "final stage" with us, regain the ability to speak and move around.

"What the hell?" Klein was the first one to speak. "Where are we?"

I turned around and walked over to Klein.

"Glad to see that you're able to function again." I said. "Kayaba described this place as the "final stage" of SAO. He says that we deserve the ability to be here, watch the sunset and just enjoy our final moments in-game together."

Agil paced over to us.

"Wait, you talked to the man himself?" he asked.

"Yeah, Kirito!" Klein chimed in. "I thought you killed him?"

"I don't think it was really him." I said. "I think it was just his afterimage."

"Tell me something, Kirito." Asuna spoke as she walked up to me.

"Yeah?" I asked as I turned to face her.

"How did you come up with the idea to defeat Kayaba like you did?" she asked.

"Yeah, how did you do that?" Klein chimed in.

I turned and walked a foot or so away from them. I came to a stop as I gazed out at the sky, looking at the Castle that Aincrad took place in.

"I realized that I couldn't beat Kayaba with my strength and dual blades skill alone." I said. "So, I had to use my intelligence."

"Your intelligence?" Klein asked.

I nodded.

"I remembered the way Kains and Yolko faked their deaths. They timed a teleport at the precise second that their armor's durability ran out. I thought maybe, just maybe, if I could get Kayaba to strike my coat enough times so that its durability would run out and I collapsed onto the ground the second that it expired, essentially making it look like I had died, maybe I could get him to let his guard down. And I guess it worked."

"You really did remember their strategy…" Asuna spoke as she walked up to me. "Was that your plan from the very beginning?"

I shook my head.

"No. I came up with the plan on the fly. It occurred to me that I was wearing a clothing item with a durability bar. So, that's when I decided to put my plan into action."

Klein walked up to me next.

"Well, congratulations on winning, buddy!" he said.

I smiled as I looked down.

"I don't think that's fair to say."

Everyone looked at me.

"What do you mean?" Asuna asked.

"I don't think I actually won." I said. "I think Kayaba only allowed me to win."

"How can you say that?" Klein asked with curiosity.

"Think about it. I think he wanted to lose. I think he understood that we may not have much time left in the real world. So, he allowed me to win. I think he knew what I was doing the whole time. He must have known that I was deceiving him."

"Where's your evidence, bro?" Agil asked.

I chuckled.

"Besides the fact that Kayaba was the creator of the game and he knew everything about it, I don't have any evidence. He must have known that that "method" of faking your death existed. He has eyes and ears in Aincrad, so it wouldn't surprise me if he knew about how Kains and Yolko used that strategy to track down Griselda's killer."

"What about how he mentioned it was too easy "defeating" you?" Klein asked. "Do you still think he knew what you were doing?"

I shook my head.

"I think he was just playing along with my plan. I obviously have no evidence to support this, but I think he could have killed me if he really wanted to. I think he just let me win."

No one said a word after that. As I continued to look on, I noticed that the castle was beginning to crumble from bottom.

 _This must be what Kayaba meant,_ I thought. _The SAO servers are beginning to delete all of the game's data!_

I watched as a small section of land break away from the rest of the castle. I noticed that the land mass was part of a clearing and in the clearing, was a two-story cabin. Asuna let out a gasp of sadness.

"Let me guess." Klein replied. "Our home?"

I nodded.

"It was." I said. "And it was beautiful."

I heard Asuna begin to cry again. I turned to look at her as she put her hands over her eyes.

"Asuna, what's wrong?" I asked.

She lowered her hands from her eyes and looked at me as tears continued to stream down her cheeks.

"Two years of memories." She said. "And now it's all gone!"

She put her hands over her eyes and began to cry once more. I looked at her with sympathy as I stepped closer to her.

"Asuna," I spoke as I put my hand on her shoulder in an effort to comfort her. "Please don't cry. It's only natural."

She lowered her hands and looked at me once again.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

I looked at her with a sad smile on my face.

"Part of the journey is the end." I replied.

She looked at me, before she nodded and began wiping the tears from her face. She eventually smiled back at me and it surprised me when she took my hand in hers.

"Thank you, Kirito." She said.

"Thanks for what?" I asked.

She closed her eyes, before opening them and looking back at me, with a few tears rolling down her cheeks, however, she still had a smile on her face.

"Thanks for making this fight worth fighting!"

For some reason, I let out a gasp of surprise as I blushed. But eventually, I smiled back at her without a word.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

A few minutes had passed and now Asuna and I were alone, sitting next to each other in silence. As we sat there, I decided to break the silence. So, I turned my head to face her.

"Hey."

"Yeah?" she asked as she turned to face me.

I looked down at the "floor", as a nervous feeling began to build up in my gut, before I looked back at her.

"I hope it's not weird of me to ask this, but once all of this is over, I think I'd like to meet you and try to be friends in real life. So, is it wrong of me to ask what your real name is?"

She looked at me as she blushed, but she didn't frown or anything. She eventually smiled.

"No, of course not." She replied. "My name is Asuna Yuuki."

"Asuna Yuuki." I repeated after her.

 _That must be the most beautiful name I've ever heard,_ I thought.

Of course, I didn't say that. It would probably be weird for me to say that. She continued looking back at me as she smiled.

"What about you?" she asked. "What's your real name?"

"My real name is Kazuto. Kazuto Kirigaya."

"Kazuto Kirigaya? If you don't mind me asking, why didn't you just use your real name for your avatar instead of, well, Kirito?"

"It's kind of a long story…"

"We have some time, don't we?"

I had to give that one to her, she was right.

"Well, yeah, sure. But I wanted you to tell me about yourself. What ever happened to lady's first?"

She just smiled.

"You can go first."

I sighed.

"Whatever you say. First of all, most players don't use their real names for their avatar. And see, Kirito is a contraction of my real name. It takes the "kiri" of my last name and the "to" of my first name. Kirito. And SAO isn't the only thing that I've used it for."

"What do you mean?"

"Alright, before I tell you this next part, you have to promise me that you won't laugh."

"Okay, I won't."

"See, you say that. But every person I've ever told this, they always laugh about it."

"Kirito, just say it!"

"Okay, okay! So, when I was younger, I used to be pretty good at writing and drawing manga. Not so much anymore. But back in those days, I used to write and draw my own manga, with myself at the lead. Due to my nickname, I named my character "The Kiritonator". But it didn't last long and after the first three issues I sold, it eventually got shortened to just Kirito."

Asuna just looked at me. I let out a sigh.

"You're going to laugh now, aren't you?"

And just as I expected, a second or two later, she began to giggle.

"Ah, see? You're laughing!"

She stopped and eventually spoke again.

"I'm sorry, but you're right!" she said as she wiped a tear away. "It's funny! And cute, too!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, I guess."

"So, what did you do after you finished your manga?"

"Oh, I would sell them at school."

"And what did you do with your earnings?"

"I gave most, if not all of them, to charity. I don't want to be rich, I just wanted to provide an entertaining story."

"Well, that's nice of you. Do you still write and draw manga?"

I shook my head.

"No. Over the years, my drawing skills got worse and worse. And so, I gave it up at around the time I discovered my love for computers and technology. Interestingly enough, my cousin, Suguha, developed an impressive drawing skill. So, she dabbles in drawing from time-to-time when she's not focused on Kendo."

"Your cousin practices Kendo?"

"Mmm-hmm. And so did I, for a time. But I never liked it and I eventually quit. Suguha vowed that she would train hard for the both of us. And she did. She trained so much, that she eventually made it to nationals."

"That's awesome!"

I nodded.

"So, is there anything else that you would want to tell me?"

"Um, sure. As I said, my real name is Kazuto Kirigaya. And I think I turned sixteen last month."

"So, you're younger than me, huh?"

"Huh?" I asked in a surprised tone, as my cheeks turned light red.

"I'm seventeen. I'm a few months older than you!"

"Oh. Wow! I thought we'd be the same age!"

"I guess not. Anything else?"

"Um, I live with my aunt, uncle and my cousin, Suguha, who still thinks that we're siblings. However, my uncle is frequently away on business. And I have a love for computers and technology, which I suppose is what set me on my path to eventually play SAO."

Asuna nodded as she turned her head away from me.

"What about you, Asuna?"

She looked back at me.

"Um, I'm kind of from a rich family. Before I got trapped in SAO, I went to an all-girls private school. And actually, I almost never put on the NerveGear!"

"You didn't?"

"No. Originally, my brother bought a copy of SAO and all of the hardware required to play it. And he was off on a business trip on opening day, so he couldn't play the game. And there I was, curious about what the fuss on this game was all about. So, I put on the NerveGear that day. And…"

"And the rest is history?"

She looked offended that I interrupted her, but eventually she smiled and chuckled.

"Yeah. And the rest is history."

She continued talking and I swear, I tried to listen, but I just couldn't. I was stuck thinking about what Sachi had said, about how Asuna and I belonged together. And for some reason, it was starting to make sense. I really did like Asuna and after everything we've been through, I think I had fallen for her. Does that make sense? She always wanted me and Asuna to start a relationship when the time was right. And I had stated before that she was beautiful, I liked her hair and I found her eyes pretty to look at. So, what this the right time? And did Asuna have feelings for me, too?

 _Hold on, why do you have to ask? She appreciated how you comforted her after Yui's "death", she made you lunch because she thought that you deserved a thank you, she hugged my arm when talking about me with Mr. Nishida and she hugged me when she thought that I could die! So, she has to have some feelings for me! Just be a man and ask her, already!_

"Hey, Asuna?" I asked.

She looked at me with a confused gaze.

"Yeah, Kirito?" she asked.

I smiled back at her.

"Stop talking." I replied.

I began to lean in towards her face and I gently grabbed her arm as I did. See, SAO had this system where if it detected harassment, the harassed player could send the harassing player to the prison area with the press of a button. And seeing as that didn't happen, maybe Asuna did feel the same way about me. Oh, yeah, and there's the fact that Aincrad was currently crumbling, so the system was probably no longer intact.

But also, once I was getting really close to her face, she sat up a bit and leaned in as well, as if to meet me halfway. And then, our lips met. We kissed for maybe five or ten seconds, before we pulled apart and she rested her forehead against mine. We remained like that for a few seconds, just enjoying the moment, before we were interrupted.

"Well, it's about time!" Klein exclaimed.

Asuna and I retracted our heads and turned to look at Klein, who was standing next to Agil, a few feet away from us. Both of them were grinning.

 _So, they had seen us kiss, huh?_

It didn't really matter if they had seen us. I was just happy that Asuna returned my feelings and who cares if people saw us kiss?

"Hey, Kirito?" I heard Asuna say my name.

I looked back at her, to see that she had a smile on her face; a joyous expression. She looked genuinely happy. And it made my heart melt just looking at her face. Yes, this was coming from a guy.

"Yeah, Asuna?" I asked.

"Kiss me again!" she said, still with a smile on her face.

I chuckled, before I leaned forward once more, as I put my hand on her cheek and as she did the same. We kissed once again and once we pulled apart; a curious thought entered my head. Asuna looked at me with a troubled look on her face.

"Hey, what is it?" she asked. "You look like you're having a thought!"

I sighed as I looked down.

"I was just thinking, what if this is just a one-time thing? What if we never find each other in real life?" I asked. "Because, I mean, we can't all be in the same hospital! It's just doesn't seem realistic! And…"

"Hey." She interrupted me.

I looked back up at her. She gently put her hand on my cheek.

"I'll find you." She said in a sincere tone, with a smile on her face and a reassuring look in her eyes.

I looked back at her with surprise, but I eventually smiled and nodded.

"And Kirito?"

"Yeah?"

"I think Sachi can rest easy now. Because this is what she wanted for us!"

The mention of Sachi made me want to tear up, but I resisted the urge to cry.

"Yeah." I said as a sad smile came onto my face. "Yeah, you're probably right."

Eventually, after a few minutes had passed, Asuna and I were sitting next to each other in silence, just watching the sunset, holding hands as she rested her head on my shoulder.

"Hey, what are you guys doing?" I heard Klein ask from behind us.

I turned my head to look at him.

"We're just watching the sunset, dude." I said. "Wanna join us?"

"But it's so boring!" he said as he walked over and stood at my side.

"I know. Isn't it great?"

"Totally." He said, as Agil came to stand next to Asuna.

And so, for the remainder of time we had left, we all just watched the sunset together. A minute or so passed and what was left of Aincrad had crumbled completely. And the sun had almost completely gone down. I couldn't help but smile, as did the rest of my friends. For some reason, off in the horizon, I began to see a blinding light, as if the sun was now rising.

The light kept getting brighter and brighter, until all I could see was the light. I could no longer see the sky, just the bright light that seemed to consume everything. And somehow, I just knew that the end was near. So, I decided to speak before I lost the chance to.

"See you on the other side, guys." I replied.

"Same to you, buddy!" Klein exclaimed.

He was the last one to say something before it all ended. The light had overtaken everything at this point and there was nothing else left to see. Then, the light went out and everything went black. And that's the last thing I remember before I woke up.

 _Sometime Later_

When I finally came to, I immediately noticed that I was lying down. My vision was blurry at first, but I eventually realized that I was looking up at the ceiling, which had fluorescent lights, you know, the kinds that they only had in hospitals and schools. Speaking of hospitals, that's the only place that I could have been right now.

I slowly looked around the room but couldn't see much in my current position. I tried to move, and it felt like I was almost completely numb. Eventually, my hand came into view and I saw that it was wrinkled like an elderly person's hand would be. Eventually, I began to hear a slight beeping sound and that made me reach up towards my head.

And I touched something hard and plastic that was on my head: My NerveGear. As I put my hands on my NerveGear, images of all the friends I had made in SAO flashed through my mind. Asuna, Agil, Klein and Sachi, too.

 _Sachi…_

It had occurred to me again that I had failed Sachi. I promised that I would get her back to the real world and I had failed to do so. My eyes stung with tears and it took all the willpower that I had left not to start crying again. I summoned the strength to sit up in my hospital bed and I took off the NerveGear as the power turned off.

As I took the NerveGear off, my hair tumbled out of it. That's when I noticed that my hair was now really long now, at least as long as Asuna's in-game avatar's hair, I would say. I rested the NerveGear in my lap and heaved a sigh. It was then that I realized that I had to find Asuna and my friends. Or at least I had to try.

I would try to find my other friends and it may be rude to say but finding Asuna was my number one priority. I placed the NerveGear on the side table, then I pushed the blanket back and swung my legs over to the edge of the bed over the course of a couple minutes. I then attempted to stand up from the bed and immediately my legs crumbled beneath me.

I wasn't surprised. I shouldn't have been so quick to attempt to stand up. We've all been comatose for the past two years, so we'd all probably have to learn to walk and even function again. So, I grabbed the IV stand as if it were my trusty sword, then slowly and gingerly began to push myself up to my feet.

Once I was up on my feet, I began to push myself forward and eventually I got so far that the electrodes ripped off of my skin and I heard my monitor begin to flatline due to the disconnection. I then began to push myself forward towards the door.

"A… su… na…" I choked out the girl in question's name in a hoarse voice.

I finally made it to the door and slowly opened it.

"Asuna…" I repeated in the same hoarse tone, but this time I was able to say the full word.

I finally left the room, clinging to the IV stand as if it were my lifeline. I then set out on my search for Asuna. And for once, I didn't look back.

 _Author's Note:_

* And there it is folks, that was Chapter Fourteen, as well as the end of my adaptation of the Aincrad arc! I hope you all enjoyed!

* So, what do you think of my adaption of the final part of Aincrad? I'll just go over a few things here: 1., how Sachi died. Sachi's death is purely the reason for why Kirito attacks Heathcliff when he suspects that he's Akihiko Kayaba in disguise and he declares that "no one else has to die for Kayaba's stupid game".

* 2., his strategy in defeating Akihiko Kayaba. Is it believable that he would remember how Yolko and Kains faked their deaths and he used that same strategy to deceive Kayaba and get him to let his guard down? Maybe it's not and it's completely lackluster. I don't know, you guys tell me what you think.

* 3., how he nor Asuna died. I kind of wanted to take a happy ending here. Don't get me wrong, I love the "sad ending" of the Aincrad arc in the anime, where they both "die" and spend their final moments in the afterlife, if you want to call it that, before Kirito gets to return to the real world. It's really emotional, at least until you remember that they both survive SAO. But to me, it will always be emotional. I wanted to avoid that and actually give them the happy ending this time around. You know, with them all watching the sunset before Aincrad ends?

* Speaking of the sunset, that brings us to 4., how Asuna and Kirito got together. Is it cliché that they didn't have their first kiss until the very end? I didn't want them to get together in Chapter 10, because in the Anime, it seemed that they got together too fast (but that's probably because of how fast I watched the Anime the first time around). So, let me know: Is it cliché that they get together at the very end and that you'd prefer how they originally got together, or do you like how they bond over the course of the arc, before getting together at the end?

* And 5., it's not much of a point, I just want to explain this "reference", if you want to call it that: The final line of the chapter, being "And for once, I didn't look back". If you paid close attention in the past chapters, you will know that in almost every chapter, Kirito looks behind him. The fact (at least for me) that Kirito states that "for once, I didn't look back", should reference that he's grown as a character since the very start.

* So, like I said, tell me what you think of the final part of Aincrad. And be honest! Tell me exactly what you think of it, whether you loved it, hated it or if it was just okay. To me, this is my greatest creation in terms of fanfiction, and I want honest opinions. So, please, tell me exactly what you think. Tell me what I did wrong and generally, just tell me whatever you want to tell me, I just hope that I didn't ruin SAO for you.

* Oh, I almost forgot to mention something. I know that Kirito's manga backstory has nothing to do with any of the source material, but trust me, there is a reason for it. It's not just something that I made up for no reason. There is a reason (plot wise) that I decided to do that.

* By the way, I'm going to be changing the timeline a lot following this chapter. I'll still adapt the Fairy Dance arc (if you guys want me to), but the next three chapters will be Post-Aincrad or Pre-Alfheim chapters (basically just build up to Fairy Dance). So, expect three chapters of original content on my part!

* Anyway, that's going to do it for me, I think. Once again, no review responses this time. So, I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Guest Review (Chapter 13):_

 _Although I am happy to see that Sachi survived, I am sad and disappointed to see that Asuna is still chosen and other girls like Sachi are discarded! Sao was originally a webnovel and in the webnovel, Sachi was Kirito first love! then Kirito x Asuna! from what I read, in the light novel (version adapted in anime), it would be the publisher which would have erased the relationship between Kirito and Sachi in favor of Asuna._

 _that means that Asuna was already presdestined no matter what! Poor Sachi, still trashed for the benefit of the one and only Asuna! it is really sad to see that with rare exceptions other girls are always forgotten, especially Sachi, as if they don't exist. what if Sachi had the same development as Asuna? if it had my adaptation of Sao, I would have chosen Suguha or Sachi, pairings much more natural and especially less "predestined" than Kirisuna!_

 _yes i would not have chosen Asuna (unless it was Kirito x harem) but Kirito x Suguha and/or Sachi._

Okay, I'll start with getting this out of the way: I love the Kirito x Asuna pairing and it's the only pairing for me. They are perfect together and I'm sure that a bunch of people will disagree with me, but that's okay. That's just my opinion. I am however, open to accept other pairings, but I won't actually use them in this story (and likely, any other SAO story I may write in the future).

I'm with you on how Sachi died in the anime/every other depiction of SAO. That's why I decided to keep her alive in my story. I'll admit it: I would have actually liked to see her be able to have a relationship with Kirito, for a while anyway. A friend of mine feels the same way that I do about this. He wanted to see them get together and when she died, he was so broken up about it.

I didn't even know that there was a web novel. I started with the anime and then transitioned over to read the light novel. I also dislike how Kirito essentially forgets that Sachi existed (well, occasionally forgets) once he starts hanging out with Asuna. And if you hate how I killed her off at the last second, well, I don't want to tease something more than I already have, but I highly suggest you check out the next chapter when it drops. If you want to write your own adaptation of SAO, go for it!

You say "pairings much more natural" when talking about Sugu. Well, Kirito and Sugu are cousins, right? Look, I get a lot of people enjoy fanfics like that and so do I (to a certain degree and hell, I write one!) But my problem with Kirito x Sugu, is that they were raised as siblings. And that makes it weird, to me at least. I also don't generally enjoy harem stories. But this is all just my opinion.

So, if you think you can pull a story like that off, then by all means, go for it. Anyway, that's about it. I just wanted to give you my two cents about this. And I also wanted to say that I agree with most of your points. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Two weeks after he wakes up, Kazuto is still adjusting to life back in the real world. While he awaits Asuna's awaking with Klein, Kazuto gets a pleasant surprise in the hospital.


	15. Chapter 15: Post-Aincrad: The Aftermath

Chapter 15: Post-Aincrad: The Aftermath

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Fifteen, as well as the first of the three Pre-Alfheim chapters!

* So, I won't give anything away on what's going to happen in this chapter. That being said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _November 20_ _th_ _, 2024 – Tokyo Hospital_

It had been two weeks. Two weeks since Sword Art Online ended. I went searching for Asuna once I woke up on the day the game ended, but I didn't find her that day. I was quickly found by the nurse responsible for my care, Aki Natsuki, and was promptly escorted back to my hospital room.

Aki was a tall woman, with a slender frame. She had light brown hair that was usually braided, as well as hazel-colored eyes. I couldn't deny that she was pretty. But as corny as it sounded, my heart belonged to another. She also wore the typical nurse's uniform and usually had glasses on.

I demanded a couple of times that I get to see Asuna, however she kept insisting that I needed to get back to my room. Once I was back in my room and connected to the electrodes again, the hospital called my Aunt and cousin, Suguha. They arrived about five minutes before Kikuoka Seijirou, a representative of the "SAO Case Victims Rescue Force", did.

They were an organization that were dedicated to making sure that the SAO survivors were cared for, as well as making sure that we were all interviewed once we woke up. Seeing as I was the first survivor to wake up, Kikuoka immediately wanted to interview me. However, I told him that unless I got to see Asuna, my mouth would stay shut.

He struck a deal with me and the hospital staff disclosed Asuna's location to me, which happened to be one floor below me. After I knew where she was, I went ahead with the interview. I told Kikuoka all I knew about SAO and the stuff that Akihiko Kayaba had told me about Argus and the SAO mainframe, how that all the data from the game had been deleted after the game had been cleared.

Once I told him all I knew, he left. I was then told that I was going to have to stay in the hospital for a couple weeks, as per my rehabilitation. That was fine with me. As long as Asuna was here, I didn't want to leave. Part of my rehab was having to learn to walk again. Before my rehab began, I was confined to a wheelchair. And after that, I was permitted to walk with crutches.

I worked with the crutches for about a week and just a day or two ago, I was allowed to start walking with a cane. Having a cane made it a bit easier to get around and I was able to move a bit more freely. The doctors and my nurse told me that if my legs are strong enough to walk on their own after about a week with the cane, I'd be able to walk without it.

During my free time every day, I would go to visit Asuna in her room, just hoping that she would wake up. She hasn't yet. Her father, Shouzou Yuuki, would also be visiting her most of the time that I spent in her room. When I first met her father, I told him that Asuna and I had been friends within the game.

I never told him that we were together now, or at least I would think that Asuna and I are together. But Mr. Yuuki didn't need me to tell him that Asuna and I were more than friends. I think he could sense that there was something more between us. But anyway, when I learned that Asuna was still comatose, I had a thought. What if she was somehow still trapped in SAO?

So, I attempted to use my old NerveGear to re-enter SAO, to find her. Unsurprisingly however, the SAO servers had been completely shut down. So, there's no way that she could have still been stuck in SAO. That led me to think that she was in a coma and that she would have to wake up on her own.

Well, it's been two weeks since I woke up and she still hasn't woken up. However, I wasn't alone in waiting for her to wake up. In turned out that Klein was in the same hospital as I was. And he woke up three days after I did. Most of the time, he'd be with me when I was visiting Asuna. However, I visited her more than he did.

He was also confined to a wheelchair longer than I was, for some reason. Also, Klein's real name was Tsuboi Ryoutarou. However, his real name was a bit of a mouthful, so I decided to stick with calling him Klein. He didn't seem to mind. And like all of the survivors, his hair had grown out a lot in the two years that we were comatose. His scruffy "beard" that he had sported in SAO had grown into a full length, unkempt beard in real life.

Once he was done being bedridden, his nurse helped him shave it off so he could start again. Anyway, when Klein wasn't in his wheelchair, he was instructed to practice with his crutches so he could get to the same level that I was at. But anyway, other than that, there wasn't a whole lot going on. My rehab was close to being over and if I could walk without the cane by the end of the week, I was allowed to go home.

However, as long as Asuna was here and still considered comatose, I had no interest in going home. That being said, they probably wouldn't keep me if I could function normally again. It was about 9:30 at night, November 20th. I was having trouble getting to sleep that night, so I decided to get up for a while.

I sat up in my bed and reached for my cane by my nightstand as I began to stand up from my bed. I stood up with my cane in my hand and I put my feet into my slippers which sat on the floor at the side of my bed. I bent down and grabbed my backpack with my free hand. Once I had my backpack on, I slowly walked towards the door.

I should mention at this point that since I had been awake for a while now and now that my rehab had started, I no longer needed to be hooked up to an IV or have electrodes attached to my skin. I also was able to wear clothes that Suguha had brought from home instead of a hospital gown. I left my room and over the course of the next several minutes, I slowly walked out to where the vending machines were on my floor. Once I made it to the vending machine, I bought a pack of Gummy Candies.

After that, I made my way back towards my room. On my way back, I walked past Klein's room and I noticed that his door was creaked open. I could hear the sound of a TV going from inside the room. I slowly approached the door and looked inside to see Klein sitting in his wheelchair, watching TV. I sighed, pushed the door open and walked in. Klein turned to look at the door as I walked in.

"Oh, hey. What's up, Kiri-Dude?" he asked.

Also, just like I still called him Klein, he refused to call me by my real name, usually calling me Kirito or "Kiri-Dude". And also, while we're on the subject of Klein, he wore that ugly bandanna just like he did while we were stuck in the game. He didn't wear one for the first couple days that he was awake, but eventually someone dropped some stuff off for him, and the bandanna was one of the items in his package.

"Not much." I said as shut the door behind me, before I walked over to one of the chairs beside his bed. "I couldn't sleep."

He nodded as he turned his wheelchair to face me.

"I know what you mean. There's something about being in a hospital and not at home that makes me unable to sleep."

"Is that why you're still up?"

He turned back to the TV.

"I guess. But I just really like to watch late night television."

I opened my bag of Gummy Candies as I leaned my cane against my chair.

"Want some?" I asked as I gestured at him with the packet.

"No, that's alright. Thanks for the offer, though. So, when are we going to visit Asuna tomorrow?"

I shrugged.

"What time is your physical therapy over tomorrow?" I asked.

"At around noon. Why?"

"Then we'll go visit her at around 12:30 or so tomorrow."

"Okay, sounds good."

We both went silent after that.

"Hey, I'm going to be real with you, Klein." I said, breaking the silence after a minute or so.

He turned back to look at me.

"Okay. What is it?"

I let out a sigh as I looked down.

"What if… What if she doesn't wake up?" I asked.

Klein didn't say anything in return, so I looked up at him, to see that he had a look of surprise on his face.

"Don't start with that, man." He said at last.

I ignored him and continued.

"What if Asuna is somehow damaged mentally by the experience? What if she _never_ wakes up?"

"Kazuto, snap out of it!"

I gasped with surprise as I looked back at him.

 _Klein had never used my real name before. He must be serious!_

"She's going to be fine, you hear me? She's going to be fine! Not all of us woke up at the same time, remember? I mean, you were the first one to wake up. By the way, I'm convinced that before he faded from existence, Kayaba must have pulled some strings to make that happen. You have to learn to have some faith! Why would you think like that?"

I sighed once more.

"I-I'm just starting to have my doubts. It's been two weeks, Klein!"

"Like I said man, not all of us woke up at once. It took me three days to wake up, remember?"

I scoffed.

"Yeah, what makes your case so special?"

He just looked back at me as if he were offended.

"Hey, now that's not… Oh, whatever man!"

Just then, there was a knock at the door. The door opened before Klein could speak and my nurse, Aki walked in.

"Tsuboi, have you seen Kazuto? He isn't in his…" she stopped once she walked in and saw me sitting down. "…room."

She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Oh, you're in trouble now, dude." Klein said.

"Kazuto, why weren't you in your room?" Aki asked.

I sighed.

"I couldn't sleep." I said.

"Back to your room, now." She said in a stern tone.

I heaved another sigh as I stood up, grabbing my cane as I went.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Klein." I said, waving at him as I walked.

"You bet, man!" he said. "As for you Aki, come back anytime, Baby-cakes!"

I stopped in my tracks, before I turned back to look at Klein.

"Do you ever stop trying to flirt with girls?" I asked.

He just grinned back at me.

"Hey man, it's in my title!" he said. "Klein the Womanizer, that's me! Yeah, I like the ring that it has!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Well, I don't. Whatever, man. I'll see you tomorrow."

I walked out of the room with Aki before he could say anything else. As we walked back down the hall, Aki spoke.

"Kazuto, you can't just leave your room whenever you want. Especially not without giving me a notice!"

"Not even if I want to for a walk?" I asked as I looked at her. "I get restless, you know!"

"That's what rehab is for!" she scolded me. "Look, I know that you were stuck in that game for so long and that you are anxious to get moving again, but you need to take it slowly!"

I didn't say anything.

"And don't let this become a habit, Kazuto! This is the second night in a row that I've caught you outside of your room past lights out!"

She was right. I had snuck out last night. During my therapy the other day, my aunt insisted that my old NerveGear should be thrown away. And while I was at therapy that day, she threw it away without my knowledge. However, I did eventually find out about it. And so last night, I went dumpster diving for it.

And after ripping through several trash bags and sifting through a lot of garbage for an hour, I eventually found the right NerveGear, with my name written on the back of it. Of course, I was caught on the way back and thanks to spending an hour in a dumpster, I was forced to shower. And after that, my aunt came back to the hospital to lecture me about leaving the hospital room and putting myself in danger by digging through garbage.

I think that she was being a bit too dramatic about that part. She demanded to know why I would want to hang on to the NerveGear. And so, I told her that not all of SAO was bad memories. I had told her that I met friends there, as well as my girlfriend. Well, once again, I was assuming that she was my girlfriend. I told her that because of these things, I wasn't willing to just let go of the NerveGear. She didn't like it, but she eventually let me keep the NerveGear.

"I just… I just need to get out sometimes, you know? I get restless at night and there's nothing to do!"

Aki turned to face me as we walked.

"It's not that bad. Read a book or something."

I wanted to glare at her, but I just couldn't. After several more minutes of walking, we finally came back to my room.

"Well, this is you, Kazuto." She said. "I don't want to see you out of bed again tonight."

I sighed.

"Yes, Ma'am." I said as I walked into my room.

I closed the door behind me and flicked on the light, to see Suguha sitting in a chair by my bed. Sugu had short black hair and it made her kinda look like a tomboy. But saying that was unfair of me. She also had dark grey eyes.

Most of the time I saw her, she was wearing a red zip-up jacket with a couple white stripes down the side. Right now, she was wearing jeans along with her jacket. I sighed as I walked over to the bed. I put my backpack down next to the bed and slipped out of my slippers.

"What are you doing here at this hour, Sugu?" I asked. "Isn't a school night?"

"I wanted to come see you before bed tonight." She said. "And once I get here, I learn that you snuck out again."

I sighed as I sat down next to her.

"So?" I asked as I rested my cane against the chair. "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to go for a walk."

"What if our Mom finds out?"

 _Thank God she still thinks that we're siblings,_ I thought.

"Look, I just needed some air. That's all it was."

"Uh-huh, I'm sure that's all it was."

I said nothing after that.

"Look, I'm sorry. Mom and I just worried. I worried that the whole time that you were in that game, that you, you know, wouldn't come back."

I put my hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, I'm here now, aren't I?"

She looked at me and eventually nodded. After that, we both went silent. I looked down at the floor, deep in thought.

"Hey, are you okay?" Sugu asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah." I said. "I'm fine."

She stood up from her chair and went to stand in front of me.

"Well, no offense, but I know my brother. And I know that you _aren't_ okay. So, tell me what's wrong."

I sighed.

"It's Asuna."

"The girl that you were friends with in SAO?"

I nodded.

"What about her?"

I gritted my teeth in an effort to keep from crying, but it didn't work.

"I…I…I'm beginning to have my doubts."

"What do you mean?"

"I… I…" I choked up my words as tears began to rapidly roll down my cheeks. "I don't think she'll ever wake up!"

Sugu didn't say anything for a few seconds.

"Wow," she said at last. "You really care about her, don't you?"

I said nothing and kept crying. She let out a sigh and I felt her cup my chin in her hands.

"Kazuto, look at me." She said.

I looked up at her, the image of her face being obscured by my tears. She wiped my tears away.

"Listen to me. You need to learn to have a little faith."

I chuckled as a few tears continued to roll down my cheeks.

"That's exactly what Klein said."

"Well, he's right! You need to have some faith. Not everyone woke up at once. And this girl, Asuna, she isn't the only survivor who has yet to wake up. You just need to be patient."

I looked back down as she retracted her hands from my face.

"Look, I just came by to make sure that you're doing okay. And you seem to be okay. So, I should get going."

I sniffled as I wiped my eyes.

"Yeah, you should. It's a school night."

Sugu looked at me with a pouty face.

"Don't patronize me."

"Just get going. It's past ten now."

"I will." She said as she walked towards the door.

She turned around to look at me as I stood up, grabbing my cane as I did.

"And you, get some sleep!"

I smirked at her as I slowly paced over to my bed.

"Turn the light off on your way out, will you?"

She flicked off the light switch off without a word.

"Good night, Sugu." I said as I got into the bed, resting my case against my nightstand.

"Good night, big brother." She said before leaving the room. "See you tomorrow."

I laid back and pulled my covers up to my chest as my door closed.

 _The Next Day_

The following day was a slow one. I got through my physical therapy and then patiently waited for Klein to get done with his. After that, we met up and headed out to visit Asuna.

"So, do you think she'll wake up today?" he asked as he walked next to me on his crutches.

"I don't know." I said as I pressed the button to call the elevator. "I think that it's a bit of a stretch."

"What happened to our talk about having some faith?"

"Okay, whatever. I'm sure that she'll wake up eventually."

"That's a bit better. But we still need to work on that."

The elevator come a couple seconds later, and we got on board. I pressed the button for the floor below us and the doors closed. While we rode the elevator, I decided to strike up a conversation.

"So, I'm not sure if I ever mentioned it, but the day after I woke up, I put the NerveGear back on."

He turned his head to look at me and regarded me with a confused look.

"Why the hell would you do that, Kirito?"

I looked down at the floor of the elevator.

"I thought that since she hadn't woken up yet, maybe Asuna was somehow still trapped in SAO. So, I put the NerveGear back on in an effort to re-enter SAO and find her."

"Well, any luck?"

I shook my head.

"Kayaba wasn't lying. The SAO servers really were shut down. All of the data deleted, too."

Klein only grunted as the elevator doors opened.

"That doesn't surprise me." He replied as we stepped out.

We continued down the hall towards Asuna's hospital room. After a few minutes of walking, we eventually made it. We walked into the room, to see that Asuna's father, Mr. Yuuki was already in, reading a newspaper.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Yuuki." I greeted him with a polite tone.

Mr. Yuuki looked up at me from his newspaper.

"Kirigaya." He replied in a serious tone, before looking back down at his paper, not even giving me a second glance. "How are you today?"

"I'm alright, Sir. Has there been any change?"

"I'm afraid not."

That's all he said as he went back to reading his paper. Klein slowly walked past me and gestured to the two open seats next to Mr. Yuuki. I nodded back at him and I slowly paced over to the chair the furthest away from Mr. Yuuki. I just got the feeling that he didn't really like me, so I wanted to sit the furthest away from him that I could. About five or ten minutes passed, before Aki walked into the room.

"Oh, thank God!" she said with relief. "Kazuto, I've been looking all over for you!"

I sat up as I regarded my nurse with curiosity.

"Why?" I asked. "What's going on?"

"Someone wants to see you!"

"Right now?"

She nodded.

"Well, who is it?"

"Come along and find out."

I looked at Klein and sighed.

"Alright." I replied as I stood up with my cane in hand. "Let's go, then. Mr. Yuuki."

"So long, Kirigaya." He said without looking up at me.

I looked back at Aki.

"Lead the way." I told her.

As I slowly made my way towards the door, I turned back to look at Klein, to see that he was standing up.

"You coming, too?"

"Yeah, man." He said as he got his crutches ready. "I'm right behind you."

The three of us left the room and began walking down the halls. After a few minutes of us walking, I spoke up.

"So, seriously. Who wants to see me?"

"You'll have to see for yourself." Aki replied. "It's not for me to say."

That sort of made me nervous, but it also intrigued me. So, without any other option, I kept pacing along. About five more minutes of walking passed, until we came to a stop outside of a hospital room with the door open.

"Hey!" a female voice from inside spoke. "Gently! She just woke up and she's very weak!"

Aki turned to face me.

"She's right in here." She replied, gesturing towards the door.

I slowly approached the open door, with Klein slowly trailing behind me.

"She requested to see this "Kirito" person, but after that, she's to go right back to sleep!" a male voice spoke. "She needs rest!"

I entered the room and immediately saw that my view of the patient in the bed was blocked by a nurse.

"No, she needs to eat and drink something!" the nurse exclaimed.

The male, the doctor I presumed, let out a growl of impatience.

"Fine! She eats something and then it's back to bed!" he said.

The nurse finally moved out of the way, allowing me to see the patient. The patient was a female, which I had already picked up on and she had long, black hair that reached her upper-back. The patient turned in my direction, allowing to me to see her face. I just stared back with shock, as I realized who it was. It was Sachi! I knew it was! My eyes stung with tears as I looked at her.

 _How can Sachi be alive? She's supposed to be dead!_

"Kirito." She finally croaked out my name in a hoarse tone.

Tears of joy ran down my cheeks. I stepped forward as my cane dropped from my hand. I stumbled a bit as I walked forward, falling against the hospital bed. After I bumped into the side of her hospital bed, I pulled Sachi into a hug. I wasn't even hugging her for five seconds before we were interrupted.

"Hey, easy!" the male doctor exclaimed as he pulled me away from her. "She's very weak!"

As the doctor helped me up, Aki ran over and picked up my cane from the floor. She held it out to me, and I took it from her.

"Thanks." I said as I steadied myself.

I kept my gaze on Sachi. I sniffled as I wiped the tears from my face.

"Sachi, how?" I asked. "You died! I held your hand as you died!"

She only smiled at me and before she could speak, Klein answered for her.

"I think I can answer that." He said.

I turned to look at him with confusion.

 _Klein_

 _November 7_ _th_ _, 2024 – Seventy Fifth Floor: Dungeon_

"If it's okay, I have a final request to make." Kirito spoke.

"What is it?" Kayaba asked.

"If I die here, today, I want you to promise me that my friends will see the real world again." Kirito replied. "Agil, Klein and Asuna, I want them to be able to see their families again one day. I think it's only fair."

As they kept talking, something hit me. Sachi had died. But maybe there was a way to bring her back! I still had the revival item that Kirito had given me several months ago, so I wasted no time in opening my inventory and equipping it. I stared at it as I tried to figure out what to do.

"Um, revive Sachi?" I eventually whispered.

The revival item shimmered, before it shattered into glittering shards.

 _It had to have worked!_

"What was that?" Asuna asked as she turned her head.

"Nothing!" I quickly said. "Don't worry about it!"

Asuna said nothing and eventually turned back to watch the fight that was about to start. And so, I did the same.

 _Kirito_

 _November 21_ _st_ _, 2024 – Tokyo Hospital_

I looked at Klein as he kept telling the story.

"I saw the revival item shatter once I gave it a command." He said. "So, I thought that it worked. And apparently, it did. Because here Sachi is now."

He looked down as he let out a sigh.

"Klein?" I asked with concern.

He looked back up at me.

"I knew how much Sachi meant to you, Kiri-Dude. I knew that you wanted her to be able to make it back to the real world." He said. "And when I remembered that I had the revival item, I couldn't just stand back and do nothing."

I just looked at him.

"I can't believe that you'd do that." I said. "Thank you."

His expression didn't change.

"Don't thank me, thank yourself. If you hadn't got the revival item that day, then Sachi really would be dead. And I told you, I know how important it was to you to get her back to the real world."

I couldn't express my thanks to him. I would never be able to properly thank him. Before any of us could say anything else, the doctor spoke.

"Okay, our patient has seen you." He said. "We must ask that you leave now."

"We understand." Klein answered for me.

I turned to look at Sachi, still having tears in my eyes. I reached out and gently took her hand in mine.

"Feel better soon, okay?" I asked.

She smiled up at me and nodded. I felt someone's hand on my shoulder.

"Kiri-Dude, let's get out of here." Klein said from behind me.

I turned to face him.

"Right." I said, before turning back to Sachi.

I gently squeezed her hand and let go, before I turned around and left the room with Klein. As we walked, Klein spoke.

"Maybe now, you'll have some faith."

I turned to look at him.

"What?" I asked.

"Maybe this will teach you to have some faith. It may have taken about two weeks, but Sachi still woke up."

I looked back ahead of me as we kept walking. You know what? I think Klein was right.

"Yeah. You're probably right." I said. "Asuna's going to wake up and when she does, she's going to be just fine."

"See?" he asked. "That's the spirit!"

I nodded as we continued walking. After a minute or two of walking in silence, I came to a stop as Klein continued walking. Eventually, he noticed that I was beside him anymore, so he stopped as well.

"Kirito?" he asked as he slowly turned around. "Kiri-Dude, what is it?"

I just stood there for a few seconds before I spoke.

"Go back to your room, Klein."

He regarded me with a confused look.

"You don't want to visit Asuna?" he asked.

I shook my head.

"No. I just want some time to myself. I'll see you later."

I began to slowly walk again.

"Okay, man. See ya!"

I nodded.

"Yeah." I said as I walked past him.

 _Later_

I stood in my room, standing with my cane in my hand. I took a deep breath.

"Okay." I said. "Let's try this again."

I placed my cane on the bed and stood up straight without it. I took a step forward and began to stumble. I spread my arms out on either side of me, which steadied me a bit. Once I was steady, I took another step forward, this time without fail. And then another step. I tried to take a fourth step, but I finally stumbled and just as the door to my room opened.

"Hey, big brother." I heard Sugu's voice as she walked in. "I brought…"

I fell over after attempting to walk as she came in.

"Kazuto!" she exclaimed with worry and disappointment as she ran in my direction.

She dropped a bag that she had been carrying next to my bed and bent down to help me up.

"You know that you're not allowed to attempt walking without your cane!"

She pulled me up to my feet and forced my cane back into my hand.

"Alright, alright. I'm okay!" I said. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

She ignored my question.

"Why were you walking without your cane?" she scolded me.

I sighed, seeing as she wasn't going to just let this go.

"I just wanted to try to walk without it!" I said. "I have to practice!"

"You can't just try on your own when no one is around!" she lectured me. "That's what physical therapy is for!"

"Ah, whatever, Sugu! Stop lecturing me!" I said as I crossed my arms and looked away from her. "Why are you here, anyway?"

She walked over to where she had dropped my bag and picked it up.

"I brought you some more changes of clothes from home." She said as she walked back over to me.

"Leave it over there." I said as I pointed at one of the chairs.

Sugu ignored me, walked over to my nightstand and then proceeded to begin putting my clothes into the drawers. After a minute or so, she stood up and looked at me.

"Okay, there." She said. "You have more clothes for your last few days here."

"Thanks." I said.

She crossed her arms over her chest.

"So, I talked to Aki before I came in." she said. "She said that you were in better spirits today. So, what's up? What's got you so happy?"

I just chuckled as a small smile came to my face.

"Oh, it's just that someone woke up today."

Sugu's eyes lit up, which sort of surprised me.

"Really? Was it Asuna?"

I shook my head.

"I wish. No, there's this girl that I was friends with in the game. Her name is Sachi. And I thought she had died. But, she didn't. See, I got this revival item from killing a boss during a Christmas event and I gave it to Klein. And when Sachi died in the game, Klein used it and revived her before the NerveGear could fry her brain. And she woke up today."

"That's great!"

I nodded.

"You think she'll wake up soon? Asuna, I mean?"

"I would hope."

Sugu nodded. We both fell into silence after that. Eventually, she stepped forward and put her hand on my shoulder.

"Well big brother, I think I'm going to get out of here." She said. "Feel better soon, mom and I would like to see you come home at some point."

I nodded.

"Yeah, me too."

Sugu walked towards the door. She turned back to look at me with a smile on her face.

"See you later, Kazuto!"

"Bye, Sugu!" I said with a smile on my face as well.

She the door closed behind her as she left the room. I let out a sigh as I walked over to my bed.

"What a day." I replied as I laid down on my bed.

 _The Next Day_

Another day in the hospital had passed. And Klein and I were once again visiting Asuna. The three of us: Mr. Yuuki, Klein and I had been sitting in silence for the past two hours. Until Mr. Yuuki spoke up, that is.

"Alright then, I'm going to see what the cafeteria is serving today. Kirigaya, Ryoutarou."

"Mr. Yuuki." Klein said in a polite tone.

I was about half asleep when Mr. Yuuki announced that he was checking out for a while, so I just mumbled an incoherent response.

"Maybe you should go take a nap, Kirigaya."

I opened my eyes to look at him.

"No, I'll be fine Mr. Yuuki. You go on ahead."

He left the room without another word. Once he left the room, I slumped back over in my chair and closed my eyes once again. I don't know how much time passed as I sat there, half asleep, but it couldn't have been a whole lot of time. Suddenly, I heard a sneeze break the silence, but I didn't give it much thought. Eventually, Klein let out a gasp.

"Kirito, look!"

I opened my eyes a bit and looked at him.

"What?" I asked.

Klein pointed at Asuna's bed, so I looked in that direction. I gasped as well when I saw that Asuna had sat up.

 _She must be the one who had sneezed!_

She slowly took off the NerveGear and her hair came tumbling out as mine had. She began to look around as if she were confused. Her gaze eventually fell on me and when she looked at me, she smiled as if she were content where she was at. I was stunned. She looked so much more beautiful than she had in SAO. Well, maybe that was because I now appreciated her more than I had before realizing that I had feelings for her.

"I'll go get Mr. Yuuki!" Klein said as he stood up with his crutches.

"M-My… My…" Asuna tried to speak but stopped when she realized her voice was hoarse.

She cleared her throat several times before attempting to speak again.

"My father is here?" she croaked out.

"Yeah. I'll go get him!" Klein said, before exiting the room and leaving us alone.

Once he was gone, I stood up with my cane in hand and pulled my chair up closer to her bedside.

"So," I asked. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine." She croaked out with a smile on her face. "Kirito, right?"

"Kazuto." I corrected her. "Kazuto Kirigaya."

"Kazuto. Right."

I regarded her with a serious look on my face.

"Asuna, what do you remember?" I asked.

She looked back at me.

"I remember everything. As for the last thing I remember, I remember resting my head on your shoulder before everything went black. How long has it been?"

"Two weeks."

"It's been that long?"

I nodded.

 _So, if she remembers the end, then she must remember the kiss that we shared!_

Asuna looked away from me as I thought to myself.

"Hey, Asuna?" I eventually asked.

She turned back to look at me.

"Yeah?" she croaked out.

I looked down, trying to decide how I should say what I wanted to say.

"So, what was that? The kiss we shared in SAO; I mean. Did it mean anything or..."

"Kirito, don't go there."

I let out a sigh. I had sort of expected this.

"Sorry, it's just that I've never had a girlfriend before. I liked the kiss that we shared, and I think that I really like you, and..."

"No, Kirito! That's not what I meant." She interrupted me as she put her hand on mine.

I looked up at her, to see that she had a sympathetic look on her face.

"I meant... Just come here."

She leaned forward and I leaned in to meet her halfway. And so, our lips met for the first time in real life. And kissing her in real life felt amazing compared to kissing her in SAO. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that in SAO, our bodies were made of up ones and zeroes? As we continued to kiss, someone cleared their throat from behind us. Asuna and I pulled away from each other and we turned to see Mr. Yuuki standing with Klein across the room from us.

"Why am I not surprised?" he asked. "I knew that there was something going on between you and my daughter, Kirigaya!"

I had no idea what to say. Luckily, Asuna spoke up for me.

"I really like him, Dad!" she said in a hoarse voice. "Please, don't ruin this for me!"

She then turned to look back at me.

"Kirito, what I was trying to say is that my feelings for you are real." She said. "I really like you and I kissed you, because I like you!"

I just stared at her with surprise as she smiled at me. Eventually I smiled back and rested my forehead against hers, as she took my hand. I could have sworn I heard the sound of someone growling behind us. Asuna retracted her head to look back at her father.

"Daddy, please!" she exclaimed.

I turned my head to look at Mr. Yuuki, who had the sternest look that I had ever seen on his face. Eventually the look faded and he let out a sigh.

"Just keep your hands to yourself." He said at last, before turning around and leaving the room.

"Dad?" Asuna asked with confusion.

I turned to look back at Asuna.

"I don't think your dad really likes me." I said.

She just shrugged.

"He'll come around." She said as she took my hand again.

I nodded as I squeezed her hand, grateful that she had finally woken up.

 _Later That Night_

I sat alone in Asuna's room, as she slept. I was holding her hand in mine as I sat at the side of her bed. She was no longer hooked up to the monitors, nor was she wearing a hospital gown anymore. Her father brought her some clothes from home to wear.

I looked at the digital clock on her nightstand, to see that it was almost eleven. I let out a sigh, seeing as I had to leave her for the night. I grabbed my cane as I stood up and I let go of her hand. I began to slowly walk towards the door in an effort not to wake her.

"Where are you going?" I heard her ask.

I turned to face her with shock, as I saw her beginning to sit up as she rubbed her eyes. I let out a sigh as I walked back over to her bedside.

"I have to get back to my room." I said. "If I'm not in my room and my nurse comes by, she'll freakout."

I turned to start walking again, when Asuna spoke once more.

"You can't stay with me?"

I turned to look at her once again.

"But Aki will freak if I'm not in my room!"

She then looked at me with puppy dog eyes.

"Please?"

I looked down at her as she continued smiling at me, making it more difficult to refuse. I finally sighed.

"Okay, I'll stay." I said.

She just smiled as I walked back over to her bedside. I sat back down in my chair and she gave me a confused look.

"What?" I asked.

"No, I meant..."

She blushed as she stopped speaking.

"What is it?"

The pink on her cheeks faded. She looked up at me.

"Kirito, that's not what I meant."

"Kazuto." I corrected her.

She ignored me.

"Will you share the bed with me?" she asked.

The question shocked me, and I blushed as she did as well.

"Um, if I do that, your dad will kill me." I said.

She looked back at me with puppy dog eyes once again.

"Please?" she asked.

"Your dad will kill me." I repeated. "Literally kill me."

The puppy dog look on her face didn't change. I finally let out a sigh and gave in.

"Scoot over." I replied.

She smiled with satisfaction, knowing that she had won. She began to scoot over, making room for me in the bed. I sighed once again as I moved to lay down next to her. Once I was lying down, she moved over and snuggled up against me. Sweat began to bead up on my forehead as a nervous feeling began to build in my gut.

"Why are you so tense, Kirito?" she asked as she chuckled. "Relax!"

I let out a sigh.

"I _am_ calm, Asuna." I whispered.

After that, silence fell between us. Asuna stared down at me with a smile on her face, as she gently began to caress my face.

"What?" I asked.

"You know, you're actually kinda cute." She said, still with a smile on her face.

I blushed as I turned the lamp on her nightstand off.

"Hey, I'm supposed to be telling you that _you're_ cute." I said.

She just continued to smile as she stroked my cheek still.

"Kirito, I think I know why we never got along in SAO." She eventually said.

"Kazuto." I corrected her again.

"What?" she asked with a confused expression on her face.

"My real name is Kazuto."

She just stared down at me.

"Well, no offense, but I don't think I can ever call you by your real name."

"Why not?" I asked with confusion.

"Because, I knew you as Kirito in SAO, that's who you were to me. And calling you anything but Kirito feels wrong to me!"

I looked up at her as I let out a sigh.

"I guess that makes sense. And what about SAO? Why do you think that we never got along?"

"I think we never got along because we both had romantic feelings for each other. And we were both afraid of what the other would think, so we kept the feelings to ourselves."

I just looked up at her with confusion.

"So, you think that we were unintentionally friend-zoning each other?" I asked.

"Yeah, I guess that's one way to see it."

"I don't really believe it."

She continued stroking my face.

"You don't have to." She said.

After she said that, she pulled me into a kiss.

"Don't get carried away." I said as I smiled against her lips.

She slapped my arm for that.

"Pervert." She whispered to me.

She pulled away from me as I put my hand on her back and forced her to lay down.

"Now, go to sleep." I whispered back to her. "If we don't wake up before your father gets here tomorrow, he'll have my head."

Asuna shifted as she got more comfortable.

"Okay." She whispered. "Good night, Kirito."

I almost corrected her again, but I resisted the urge to.

"Good night, Asuna." I said in reply.

 _The Next Morning_

Well, despite my best efforts, I didn't wake up before Asuna's father got in. Once I came to, I thought I saw someone standing over me. Once I rubbed my eyes, I realized that there was someone standing over me. And unsurprisingly, it was Asuna's father. I jolted up a little bit and luckily didn't wake Asuna. I was about to whisper Mr. Yuuki's name, but he put his finger to his lips.

"Outside, now." He whispered. "Don't wake my daughter."

He then walked to the door, opened it and walked outside. I let out a sigh as I slowly flipped Asuna onto her side and quietly stood up from the bed. As I grabbed my cane, Asuna woke up.

"Kirito?" she whispered in a tired tone. "Where are you going?"

I shushed her as I bent down to pull the covers up to her shoulders.

"Go back to sleep." I said. "I'll be back soon."

She stared up at me with a longing gaze, before she nodded and laid her head back against the pillow. After she went back to resting, I slowly made my way to the door. I left the room and stopped once I saw Mr. Yuuki standing in the hallway. Before I could say anything, he spoke.

"Close the door, Kirigaya."

I did as he said, turned and closed the door. I turned back to him, where he remained in silence.

"Mr. Yuuki?"

He said nothing still.

"Um, Mr. Yuuki?" I repeated.

He turned to look at me with a stern look on his face.

"Don't interrupt my thoughts." He said.

I gulped, feeling sort of nervous. I don't know why, but I felt sort of intimidated by Mr. Yuuki. He let out a sigh before speaking.

"Kirigaya, it's very clear to me that my daughter likes you. For some reason."

I didn't say a word, I only listened.

"So, I'm going to give you a chance."

I still didn't say a word.

"I'm going to give you a chance to prove to me that you're the right boy for my little girl."

I didn't know what to say. I feared that whatever I could say would just make Mr. Yuuki angry.

"What are you waiting for, Kirigaya? Say something."

I finally cleared my throat.

"I won't let you down, Sir!"

He looked back at me with a stern look still on his face.

"You say that. I'll let you in on a little secret, Kirigaya." He said. "You're not the first boy that I've considered for my daughter. And something tells me that you won't be the last."

I said nothing in return and Mr. Yuuki continued speaking.

"The last one, I surely thought would be the one. He became like a son to me. But, my Asuna hated him. She hated everything about him. And so, we had to let him go."

"I don't want to know." I choked out.

"No. I don't suppose that you would."

He went silent after that. Eventually he let out a sigh and spoke again.

"I'm giving you this chance. Don't make me regret it."

I just stood there, looking at him.

"I won't let you down, Sir." I repeated.

I turned around to return to Asuna's room, but he stopped me.

"Ah, ah, ah. Let my daughter rest for a while, Kirigaya." I said. "You can visit her later."

I turned back around and went back towards the elevator.

 _Author's Note:_

* So, I know this is a rather weird place to end this chapter, but nevertheless, I hope you guys enjoyed the first of the three Pre-Alfheim chapters!

* So, what did everyone think? I hope you enjoyed all of the original content in this chapter, from Sachi surviving to how Asuna woke up. Speaking of Asuna, I know that Kirito and her father have a relatively good relationship in the Anime. I know it may be out of character for Mr. Yuuki not to trust Kirito, it may even be stereotypical, but I also feel like it's realistic. But I assure you that Mr. Yuuki will eventually come to like Kirito.

* Also, the scene towards the end where Asuna and Kirito slept together, that was me trying to replicate one of the scenes in Girl of the Morning Dew, I believe? Tell me if I succeeded or don't, I don't really care.

* I think that's going to do it for me. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye!

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _OddEyesGreyDrake: I love the point in where you write "part of the Journey is the end" direct reference to Avenger's: Endgame right? If it is i love it and if not it is really greatky written, so i Will thank you for the easter egg_

Thanks, Drake. Um, intentional reference, unintentional reference, it's actually a little bit of both. I wanted to subtly reference Endgame (which I haven't seen yet, hopefully I will soon), but at the same time, getting this message across the board was more important:

The message that once this game ends, you need to learn to let go of some things and return to real life. If that message makes sense, anyway. I'm glad that you thought it was well written, if you really do think so. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kazuto, Klein, Sachi and Asuna catch up in the hospital. Later, once Sachi has completed her rehabilitation, Kazuto is finally able to let go of The Moonlit Black Cats. Kazuto finds a new way to spread awareness about the SAO incident.


	16. Chapter 16: Letting Go

Chapter 16: Letting Go

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Sixteen!

* I'm not going to say anything, so let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _November 28_ _th_ _, 2024 – Tokyo Hospital_

So, I had finished my rehab and I had been allowed to go home yesterday. But I came back today to visit Sachi and Asuna. I had just gotten into the hospital about five or so minutes ago and was in the elevator, on the way up to the floor that Sachi and Asuna were on.

The elevator doors opened, and I stepped out. I began walking down the hall towards Sachi's room. After a minute or so, I reached her room and walked in.

"Okay, is she ready to go see Asuna today?" I asked.

I saw that Sachi was already in her wheelchair, ready to go. Sachi's nurse smiled upon seeing me walk into the room.

"She's all yours, Kirigaya!" she replied.

"Thank you." I said with a smile as I walked over to her wheelchair.

I held out my cane to Sachi.

"Here. Hold this, Sachi."

She took my cane from my hands and rested it across the arms of the wheelchair. I walked behind the wheelchair and grabbed the handles of it.

"Are you okay?" Sachi's nurse asked.

I nodded.

"Are you sure you can make it to Miss Yuuki's room on your own?"

"I'll be okay. Thank you, Ma'am."

"I'm just doing my job, Kirigaya."

"I appreciate it."

I began to push Sachi's wheelchair towards the door. Once we were out the door and I was pushing her chair down the hallway, Sachi spoke.

"So, what's the deal with the cane? Why do you still use it if you're out of the hospital?"

"I've practiced walking without it. My legs are getting stronger every day." I said. "But if I know that I'm going to be walking for a while, I don't want to risk trying to walk without me."

"So, that's why you have it today? Because you'll be walking a lot?"

"Yes."

"I suppose that makes sense."

I continued pushing her wheelchair down the hall and eventually after another minute or two, we reached Asuna's room. I pushed her chair into the room, to see that Klein had already arrived.

"Hey, welcome to the party!" Klein replied as he saw us enter.

"Hey, guys." I greeted.

"Hi!" Sachi replied in a cheerful tone.

I wheeled Sachi over to the foot of the bed and left her there. From there, I began to make my way over to the side of the bed.

"You don't want your cane?" Sachi asked.

"What? Oh, I'll be fine." I replied without looking back at her.

I stopped once I reached Asuna.

"Hi." I said.

Asuna looked up at me with a smile on her face and I looked back at her, as if we were in our own little world.

"Hi." She replied in return.

I put my hand on her cheek and she began to sat up as I leaned in.

"Are they gonna kiss?" Sachi asked.

"Kinda looks that way, yeah!" Klein replied.

Asuna took my hand as our lips met. We kissed for a couple seconds until we were interrupted.

"Boo!" Klein exclaimed.

"Get a room, you two!" Sachi chimed in.

We probably would have held it for a couple seconds more, but someone cleared their throat. I pulled away from Asuna and turned my head, to see Mr. Yuuki standing in the doorway.

"Oh!" I said with surprise as I stepped back from the bed. "Mr. Yuuki!"

He didn't look happy to see me.

"What did I say about keeping your hands to yourselves?" he asked in a stern tone.

"Um, sorry?" I asked as a warm feeling spread across my cheeks.

I didn't move from my spot, but once Mr. Yuuki began to walk forward, I kinda wish that I had. I pulled on the neck of my shirt, suddenly feeling lightheaded.

"So, what are you doing up here?" I asked in a nervous tone.

"I came to see how my daughter was doing today." He said. "Asuna, are you doing okay today?"

Asuna sighed.

"I'm fine, Dad." She said.

"Did you have an idea that I would be here?" I asked in an awkward tone.

"Call it father's intuition." He said as he gently ran his fingers through Asuna's hair.

"Isn't that mother's intuition?" I asked.

Mr. Yuuki looked up at me, still having a stern look on his face, now with an annoyed look in his eyes. I shrunk back nervously.

"Sorry."

After a few seconds, he returned his gaze to Asuna.

"Well," he said as he patted her shoulder. "You seem fine to me."

He stood straight up and turned his head to look at us.

"Good day, Mr. Tsuboi." He said as he turned towards the door. "Miss Sachi."

Klein and Sachi nodded politely without a word.

"Bye, Mr. Yuuki!" I said.

"Kirigaya." He said without turning to face me. "Remember what I said: "Keep your hands to yourself"."

I let out a sigh of defeat as he left the room.

 _What is it going to take to get Asuna's dad to see that I'm a good guy?_

As if he had read my thoughts, Klein spoke.

"I don't think he likes you."

I snapped my head in his direction.

"Gee, thanks, Klein!" I said. "I didn't know that!"

"He'll come around, Kirito!" Asuna chimed in.

I turned to look at her as I sighed.

"Face it, Asuna. Your dad hates me!"

Asuna reached up and gently touched my cheek.

"I don't care what he thinks about you! The only thing I care about is the fact that we found each other!"

"Hey, what about us?!"

Asuna and I turned our heads to look at Klein and Sachi, both of them sporting irritated looks.

"Oh and of course, the fact that Sachi is still alive." Asuna replied.

Sachi smiled with content, while Klein still looked irritated.

"What about _me_?!"

Asuna just stared at him.

"Don't flatter yourself." She said at last.

Klein leaned back in his chair with a pouty expression on his face. Oh, and speaking of how Asuna was glad that Sachi was still alive...

 _November 23_ _rd_ _, 2024 – Tokyo Hospital_

Even though she had only been awake for a day and a half now, Sachi really, really wanted to see Asuna. Well, she wanted to see her even more when I accidentally let it slip that we had gotten together. So, that's what we were doing right now: We were going to see her.

I maneuvered Sachi's wheelchair toward Asuna's room as she held my cane. I pushed the chair through the door.

"Asuna, you have a visitor!" I called out.

"Who is it?" she called back.

I pushed Sachi's wheelchair past the curtain that blocked the view of Asuna's bed.

"Do you recognize this girl?" I asked.

Asuna looked at Sachi and it took only a second or two for her eyes to go wide with shock. She tried to get out of bed, but I stopped her.

"Sachi?! How can this be?!" she blurted out as I gently pushed her back down. "You're supposed to be..."

"Dead? Yes, I know." Sachi replied with a smile. "Well, the thing is, I _did_ die."

Asuna just looked at her with shock and confusion.

"Then, how are you alive?"

I smiled at Asuna.

"Do you remember that revival item that I got for defeating Nicholas?" I asked. "I gave it to Klein, and he used it before the NerveGear could fry Sachi's brain! He saved her! He's the reason she's sitting here right now!"

Asuna just stared at Sachi, as tears of joy came to her face. And despite what I had told her to do, Asuna quickly got out of bed and ran to hug Sachi. Or she tried to run over and hug her, rather. She didn't make it a foot before she collapsed onto the floor. Even though she had collapsed, Asuna didn't give up.

She struggled to crawl across the floor, but crawl, she did. She eventually reached Sachi's wheelchair and with her help, pulled herself up. Once she had pulled herself up, she hugged Sachi. I let out a sigh as I stepped forward.

"Come on, Asuna." I said as I gently put my hand on her shoulder. "You need to get back in bed."

I grabbed her arms and gently pulled her up.

"Come on." I said as I slowly guided her back to the bed.

Unfortunately, her legs crumbled beneath her and she fell onto her knees. I let out a sigh as I bent down and scooped her up into my arms, bridal style. I slowly made my way over to her bed and nearly stumbled, before I made it over and laid her back down.

"There. Cover yourself back up and lay down." I said.

I used the hospital bed for balance as I paced back over to Sachi's wheelchair.

"Sachi, my cane, please."

She handed it to me without a word.

"Thanks." I replied.

I held my cane in my hand as I used to help steady myself and once I was balanced again, I let out a sigh of relief.

"That's better." I said with relief.

I walked over to the chairs next to Asuna's bed and sat down in one.

"You're lucky that your dad isn't here." I said as I looked at Asuna. "He would have had a cow if he had seen me carrying you like that!"

She just chuckled in response to that.

 _November 28_ _th_ _, 2024 – Tokyo Hospital_

So, Asuna had been very happy to learn that Sachi had survived SAO. I began to slowly walk over to the chairs where Klein was.

"You don't want your cane, Kirito?" Sachi asked.

I shook my head.

"No thanks, I'll be fine." I replied.

Just as I said that, I began to stumble. And just as I reached the chair, I collapsed. I grabbed the arms of the chair and pulled myself up.

"You were saying?" Klein asked.

I looked at him with an annoyed gaze.

"Ha, ha. Very funny." I replied with sarcasm.

I sat down in the chair after having regained my balance. All of us went silent now, but eventually, Klein spoke up.

"So, as of right now, we're the only ones who made it?"

I perked up.

"Well, as in our immediate circle of friends, yes." I said. "We're the only ones who have made it."

Silence swept through the room once again. I eventually spoke up.

"I haven't even heard from Pina or Silica yet. Actually, scratch that. I haven't heard from Silica. _Just_ Silica."

"And I haven't heard from Lisbeth." Asuna chimed in.

"Nothing from Agil, either." Klein chimed in as well.

"We're lucky that even the four of us were in the same hospital!" I said. "It's unlikely that the rest of our friends are here in this hospital! We have to remember that thousands of players were stuck in SAO! A single hospital alone can't hold that many people!"

Sachi nodded.

"You're right." She said.

"Yes, he is." Asuna replied.

I let out a sigh.

"Guys, we shouldn't worry. Agil was with us during the final battle and he survived. Silica, too! My friends list would have confirmed it!"

Asuna nodded.

"I could have said the same thing about Lisbeth."

"Guys, we shouldn't worry." I said. "Wherever they are, I'm sure that they're just fine."

Once again, silence swept through the room. No one seemed to want to speak. And so, we just sat there in silence, no one saying a word.

 _One Hour Later_

So, after about an hour had passed, Sachi, Klein and I decided to go to the cafeteria. Klein was already pushing Sachi's wheelchair out the door, before he turned to look at me.

"Come on, Kiri-Dude!" he said. "Let's go!"

"You guys go ahead." I replied. "I'll catch up."

Klein turned his head and pushed Sachi's wheelchair all the way out the door. Once they were gone, I turned back to Asuna and walked over to her bedside.

"Hey, Asuna?" I said her name.

"Yeah?" she asked as she looked up at me.

"So, I've been thinking..."

"Uh-huh?"

My cheeks turned pink. I don't know why I was so embarrassed by what I was about to ask Asuna. She and I were tougher now, so I had no reason to be embarrassed! I straightened up a bit and the blush vanished from my cheeks.

"Asuna, I've been thinking that after you're better, after your rehab has been completed, I thought that I might want to take you out on a date! How does that sound?"

She looked back at me with a surprised look, as well as a blush. But eventually, she smiled.

"Yeah." She said. "Yeah, I'd like that, Kirito."

I let out a sigh of relief as I smiled.

"Oh, that's a relief!" I said. "I'm glad you said yes!"

She looked at me with a confused expression.

"You didn't think that I would say yes?" she asked.

I shrugged.

"I don't know why I was so nervous to ask you. I guess it's just because I've never had a girlfriend before!"

Asuna giggled.

"Why would you think that I'd say no? I really like you, Kirito!"

"I... I like you, too, Asuna!"

I bent down and lightly pecked her lips, slightly surprising her.

"Well, I'm sorry to leave you so soon," I spoke as I stood back up. "But I did tell Klein and Sachi that I'd catch up with them!"

"It's fine, Kirito. Just be sure to come visit me again tomorrow!"

I turned towards the door, while keeping my eyes on her.

"I will!"

I turned back and headed out the door.

 _March 12_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

Well, a few months had passed, and everyone had finally completed their rehabilitation. I had been walking without my cane for a few months now, just as everyone had. Oh, and we had found everyone else. It had turned out that just as we were trying to find them, they had been looking for us, too!

Silica had been in her own hospital, separated from the rest of us. Agil and Lisbeth had been in the same hospital, however, they rarely talked to each other. Once she was well enough, Lisbeth requested information on where Asuna and I were at. And one of the representatives of that organization, the SAO Case Victims Rescue Force, came to talk to her.

Once their discussion was over, they informed her of the hospital that we had been staying at. It was relatively the same for Silica, although it took longer for her to track us down.

Before I forget to mention it, Agil's real name was Andrew Gilbert Mills. So, he used a contraction of his name, just like I had done. Silica's real name was Keiko Ayano, while Lisbeth's real name was Rika Shinozaki. It should come as no surprise that none of us called each other by our real names.

And everyone still called me Kirito, even my own girlfriend, but I feel like I'm beginning to repeat myself. As for Sachi however, I didn't know if that was actually her real name. She never revealed whether or not it was, and I wasn't going to force her to do so. Once our rehab had ended, we all promised to get together once every couple weeks or so.

Agil was the only one who never made it to any of our hangouts. Turned out that he owned a bar, that doubled as a coffee shop in real life. So, he was working most of the time. I would visit his shop every once and a while to check in on him, but he really didn't have the time to chat. So, here I was sitting on the couch by myself in the living room, when my phone began to ring.

I reached for my phone, which was lying next to me and picked it up. The caller ID displayed Asuna's information. I couldn't help but smile as I answered the phone and put it to my ear.

"Hello?" I spoke.

"Hey, Kirito!" Asuna replied on the other end.

"Hi, Asuna!"

"So, are you ready for our date today?"

"Sure am!"

"So, where are you taking me?"

"Um, it's a surprise."

I heard her chuckle from her end.

"I'm not sure that I like surprises, but okay."

"Oh, it'll be fine! I promise, you'll like it!"

"Okay, so what time are you going to come by my house?"

I let out a quiet sigh.

"Um, is it alright if you come here? To my house?"

"Um, sure, I guess."

"Okay, thanks."

There was silence on her end for a few seconds.

"Kirito?"

"Yeah?"

"You staying away isn't going to help improve your relationship with my father."

I let out a sigh.

"I know, I just... I just don't want to have to interact with him unless I absolutely have to. On the account that he doesn't like me."

"Kirito, you just have to give him time. He'll come around!"

I let out another sigh.

"Asuna, face it. It's been more than three months and he still won't show me any sort of respect. Your dad hates me! I know it, you know it..."

Asuna interrupted me.

"You don't know that! Okay, okay, look. I'll let this slide just this once, but after this, no more avoiding my father! He has to try, and you have to try!"

I sighed once again.

"You know what? You're right, Asuna. I'm sorry."

"Good. I'm glad I got through to you."

I decided to move to another subject.

"So, when are we meeting up?"

"A couple hours. I have stuff that I want to get done."

"Same here. See you in a few hours?"

"See you then. Bye, Kirito!"

"Bye, Asuna! See you soon!"

She hung up after that and I leaned back into the couch, putting my phone down as I did. Speaking of Asuna, when we all got out of the hospital, we all compared notes. Well, in terms to where we all live, that is. Starting with Asuna, she lived across town, about half an hour or forty five minutes away from me.

Klein also lived in that general area, in terms of being across town from me. Silica and Lizbeth lived in the same general area and they were closer to me than Asuna was. And Sachi lived the closest to me, being only about ten minutes away. It was nice to know that I actually had friends living close to me in the real world. Before SAO, I was pretty anti-social, and I didn't have any friends.

Just then, there was a knock at my door. I got up and walked to the door. I opened it, to see Sachi standing out on the doorstep.

"Well, Kirito, I made it." She said. "So, what are we doing today?"

"Oh, I just wanted to show you something." I said, as I held the door open for her. "Just let me get my jacket and we can go."

Sachi stopped in her tracks as she got into the house.

"We're not hanging out here?" she asked.

I shook my head as I closed the door.

"No. We're going out to the woods."

Sachi looked up at me with caution, which made sense when I thought about how I worded that sentence.

"Um, why?"

"Look, just trust me. I promise, you'll love it."

She continued looking at me, before she sighed.

"Okay. Whatever you say, Kirito."

I turned back towards the stairs.

"I'll go get my jacket and then we'll be off!"

"Don't hurry!"

 _Ten Minutes Later_

Sachi and I walked through the woods, as she shivered next to me.

"Are you cold?" I asked as I turned to look at her.

"Only a little bit." She quickly responded.

I took notice that she was wearing a short-sleeved shirt.

"You're wearing a short-sleeved shirt. "Only a little bit"?"

As we walked, I began to take off my jacket.

"Here." I said as I draped my jacket over her shoulders. "Take my jacket."

"No, I'm fine."

"Nonsense! Just take my jacket!"

She let out a sigh, but eventually put her arms through the jacket's sleeves.

"It sure is comfy, though. Are you sure that you don't need it?"

I chuckled.

"I'll be fine, Sachi. You see, I'm actually wearing long sleeves!"

She looked at me with a deadly expression.

"Don't rub it in."

We continued walking in silence for a few minutes after that, until we were beginning to approach the spot, I wanted her to see.

"Okay, we're almost there. It's not too far now!" I replied.

"What is?"

"You'll see."

"Do you always have to be so cryptic?"

"Hey, it's me, remember?"

We walked the rest of the way in silence, until we came to a small hollow, that offered more space between trees than the rest of the woods.

"And here we are." I said.

"Okay, so why did you..." Sachi, began to speak but eventually she cut herself off.

She looked on with a shocked expression. She eventually looked back at me with the same expression. When I said nothing and only smiled back at her, she turned back to the tree that she had been looking at. See, once we were all back up and able to get around again, I wanted to do something nice for Sachi.

So, I went out into the woods and built a shrine to The Moonlit Black Cats. I nailed several planks of wood to one of the trees, recognized them as The Moonlit Black Cats and I carved their individual names into each plank. I actually remembered all of their names; it was as if they were burned into my memory.

The Guild's name was displayed on the top most plank, followed by Keita's name, Tetsuo's name, Sasamaru's name and finally, Ducker's name. And sitting at the base of the tree, were flowers that I had planted. Sachi finally gasped with shock.

"I don't know what to say..." she said at last.

I turned my head to look at her.

"When we got back, I knew that I wanted to do something nice for you." I replied. "And so, I decided to make a memorial for The Moonlit Black Cats. Obviously, I didn't know them in real life, but I knew what they meant to you."

Sachi said nothing in response. I stepped up to the tree and brushed my hands across the planks.

"I just wish that I could have saved them all." I said. "And I'm sorry that I couldn't."

I heard Sachi approach from behind me as she sighed.

"Kirito, I really do appreciate this, but you need to learn to let go." She said.

I turned to look at her.

"What?"

"Do you remember what I tried to teach you while we were still in SAO?"

I shook my head.

"You need to learn to let go. Your past doesn't define who you are, it's just the starting point for who you're going to be."

I just looked at her and blinked.

"I tried to save them all, but I couldn't. All I could do was get you out of there."

Sachi let out a sigh and stepped forward, putting her hand on my shoulder as she did.

"Kirito, listen to me. It would have been impossible for you to save them all. If you had tried to save us all, you would have been fighting with your anger, not your strength. And so, not only would all of us had died, you would have died with us. You should just be grateful that you saved me."

I just stared at her.

"Maybe you're right." I said at last.

Sachi suddenly grabbed me and pulled me into a hug.

"Thank you, Kirito!" she said, her voice being muffled by her face being in my shirt. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

I patted her back as we continued to hug.

"You're welcome, Sachi."

 _Two Hours Later_

Two hours had passed of us just talking and reminiscing about our days in SAO. While Sachi was talking, I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. Once I saw what time it was, my eyes widened with shock.

"What is it?" Sachi asked with confusion.

"It's almost three o'clock!" I exclaimed as I stood up.

She looked at me with confusion.

"So, what?"

"My first date with Asuna starts at three! I need to get back home! Crap, Asuna may be at my house right now!"

Sachi looked surprised, but she stood up, nonetheless.

"Alright, alright. Calm down, Kirito. Let's get you home."

I let out a sigh of relief and chuckled.

"Okay, good. Let's get out of here before Asuna begins to think that I'm cheating on her or something!"

Sachi just looked at me.

"That's not funny." She said.

I chuckled.

"Oh, come on." I replied. "It's a little funny!"

She shook her head.

" _No,_ it's not. This is coming from the girl who wanted you two to get together. And just hearing you say that upsets me!"

"Alright, alright! I'm sorry! I was just trying to make a joke!"

"Well, it wasn't a very good one, was it?"

She turned around without another word and began walking back.

"Come on, let's get you home."

I just stood there, before I eventually began to follow her back with caution.

 _Fifteen Minutes Later_

It took us about fifteen minutes to get back to my house. Once we were standing out front, Sachi turned to me.

"Well, thank you for today. I mean it sincerely." She said. "That was a really nice thing that you did for me."

I grinned at her in response.

"Well, I knew you would like it."

She nodded as she took off the jacket and handed it back to me.

"Here's your jacket back." She said.

"Are you sure you want to hand it over?" I asked. "It's still cold and you could just return it to me some other time. I have others!"

She didn't retract her hand.

"No, you can have it back."

I took it from her.

"Um, okay."

"Now, I should probably get out of your hair. You know, so you and Asuna can have some one-on-one time while you're on your date."

I turned my head away from her as I put my jacket back on.

"Nonsense, Sachi! You could come with us, I'm sure Asuna would love to see you! And besides, just because it's a date doesn't mean you have to be a..."

I turned my head to look back at her, surprised to see that she had gotten some distance from me and was jogging down the sidewalk, away from me.

"Third wheel." I finished as I watched her go.

"Was that Sachi?" another voice asked from behind me, making me jump.

I turned to look at Asuna standing next to me, already chuckling in response to my reaction. Speaking of Asuna, she looked great. First of all, she was wearing her hair just like her avatar's hair in SAO, just the way I liked it. And she was wearing a long skirt, basic tennis shoes and a light brown sweater.

"Where did you come from?" I asked as I recovered from my shock.

She just looked back at me with a smile.

"I've been waiting for you here, for five minutes, silly!" she said. "Did you not see me?"

I shook my head.

"How?"

"I don't know!"

She straightened up and the smile remained on her face.

"So, where are we going?"

"It's a surprise!" I said with a smile on my face.

"You can't even give me a hint?"

I shook my head. She gave me a pouty face.

"Oh, come on, Kirito! That's not fair!"

I just shrugged.

"What? I can't surprise my girlfriend? Asuna, I promise that you'll love it!"

She let out a sigh and at last nodded.

"Okay. Let's go then."

We began walking side by side and it didn't take long for her to hug herself up against my arm as we walked. I immediately tensed up as she did this, causing her to laugh.

"Relax a little, Kirito!" she said.

"I'm trying! I just... I'm just not used to being so social! I was anti-social before SAO and also, I'm not used to getting so much attention from a girl."

"You're not used to being social and having a girlfriend?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, I'm not used to being this happy."

"What do you mean?"

Asuna stopped and since she was holding my arm, I came to a stop, too.

"Let's stop for a second." She said as she put her hands on my cheeks. "Look at me, Kirito."

I did just that. I stared into her eyes, which were enchanting to look at.

"Good and happy things don't happen to me that often." She said. "And you're not used to having a girlfriend or being social. Well, we can work through these things together! The more time we spend together, the more comfortable you'll be when holding my hand or when I do things like this in public!"

I nodded.

"That makes sense." I said.

"And the more time we spend together, I'll be more used to the happy things in life!"

I looked at and when I saw her smiling, I eventually smiled too. I took her hand in mine and gently tugged her along.

"Come on now, Asuna." I said. "Let's get a move on."

She nodded with a smile on her face and we started walking down the sidewalk, hand in hand.

 _One Hour Later – The Dicey Café_

"Really, Kirito? A café? This is where you're bringing me?"

I turned to look at her.

"Yes. Why, do you have a problem with that?"

She looked back at me with a displeased look on her face.

"You couldn't take me to a place, I don't know, say, nicer looking?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, come on, Asuna! It's just for the first date!"

She just looked at me, before she sighed.

"Fine."

"Alright then!" I said as I smiled. "Let's go in!"

I began to walk towards the door, when Asuna began to speak.

"Kirito? What are you doing?"

I turned around to look at her.

"What?"

"Can't you read? The sign says, closed!"

I took her hand in mine and gently pulled her forward.

"Let's just go in."

"Okay. As long as you know what you're doing."

I opened the door for her, and she stepped in first, followed by me. Once we entered the café, we saw a bald African-American man with his back to us, whistling as he did, wearing a white dress shirt, black dress pants and an apron.

"Asuna Yuuki, I'd like you to meet Andrew Gilbert Mills!" I said. "Or, you'd know him better as Agil, part-time expert axe-wielder, full time swindler!"

Agil turned around to face me.

"Agil, I'd like you to meet Asuna Yuuki. Or as you'd know her better, Lightning Fast Asuna!"

Agil chuckled.

"Really, Kirito?" he asked. "Did you really have to add the swindler part? That's slander, my good man!"

I chuckled.

"Oh, come on, Agil! You and I both know that your prices are outrageous!"

"Hey, now! I'm a business man!"

"Keep telling yourself that!"

Agil said nothing in response as he turned to look at Asuna.

"Well, I've been waiting for this day to come. I was wondering when we'd finally meet in the real world. Pleasure to meet you, Asuna."

Agil put out his hand as he spoke, to which Asuna laughed. She gripped his hand and they shook.

"The pleasure's all mine!"

Agil eventually retracted his hand and looked back at me.

"So, what brings you two here today?"

"Today is our first date." I replied. "And I wanted to take Asuna out on a date, but I didn't want to spend too much money."

Asuna elbowed me in the shoulder, but it seemed like she was actually being playful and not serious.

"And yes, I know that makes me sound like a jerk."

"I don't care! I'm not even upset about that!" she said as she looked around. "For a café, this is actually pretty nice! I must admit that I'm pleasantly surprised!"

"I appreciate that." Agil said. "So, what can I get the married couple?"

Once he said that, Asuna and I looked at each other, both of our cheeks being red.

"Um, Agil..." I said at last as I looked back at him. "We're a tad far off from being a "married couple"."

Agil put his finger to his chin.

"Okay, then what can I get the _happy couple_?"

"That'll work!" Asuna and I said in unison, earning a blush out of one another.

 _Thirty Minutes Later_

Asuna and I sat at one of the tables in Agil's café, while making small talk. In one of the bits of silence between us, I began to toy with the straw in my class, using it to swirl the liquid around inside the glass.

"Hey." Asuna broke the silence.

"Yeah?" I asked as I looked up.

She looked nervous about what she was about to say, but spoke, nevertheless.

"Do you ever think about SAO?" she asked in a nervous tone as she looked down at the table. "Do you ever think about going back to the VRMMORPG genre?"

I gasped with surprise as I looked at her. The question surprised me, but it didn't make me upset. I let out a sigh.

"That's a really good question. To tell you the truth, I think about SAO _all the time_." I replied. "I mean, why do you think I kept my NerveGear? It kept me in that game for two years and it would have killed me if my HP had hit zero. But, it's such a memento for me, if I hadn't put it on that day, I would never have met Sachi, Klein or Agil and we wouldn't be together right now. So, I can't let it go."

Asuna looked at me expectantly.

"And what about the genre?"

I looked down at the table myself, as I tried to think of a response. Eventually, I decided to speak.

"I've thought about it a little bit here and there, but I don't think so. After SAO, I'm not sure that I want to go back to the genre. I never want to play another VRMMORPG for the rest of my life."

I looked up at her and smiled.

"And why would I? Why would I want to go back, when I'm here in the real world, with you? As long as I'm with you, I don't care where I am."

Asuna looked back at me as her cheeks turned light pink. Eventually she smiled back at me.

"Good answer." She said as she took my hand in hers.

We sat there in silence after that, just holding hands. I was looking down at the table, just thinking to myself and was just in my own little world.

"Are you alright?" she asked, eventually breaking the silence.

"Mmm-hmm." I murmured.

She looked at me with worry in her eyes.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine, Asuna."

She didn't pester me any further after that. After more silence, I eventually spoke again.

"Hey, I don't mean to sound cheap or rude, but do you mind if we cut our date short?"

She looked at me with confusion.

"Um, I suppose not." She said. "Why?"

"I just need some time to myself, so I can think. Can I walk you home?"

She looked at me for a few seconds, before she sighed.

"Although I hate that you're cutting our first date short, sure. That's fine."

I smiled with thanks.

"Come on then." I said as I got up from my chair and offered her my hand. "Let's go!"

She got up and took my hand. I turned to Agil who was still behind the counter.

"Hey, Agil! We're about to head out!" I said. "How much for the drinks?"

He turned to face us with a smile on his face.

"For the happy couple? We'll call it on the house this time!"

"Are you being serious?" I asked as a smile came to my face.

"Why not? It's your first date, so just run along! I won't make you pay this time!"

"Thanks, Agil!"

"Good night, guys!"

After saying our good byes, Asuna and I walked out of the café, hand in hand.

 _Later That Night – Kazuto's House_

After walking Asuna home and successfully avoiding conversation with her father, I walked back to my house. Once I got in, Sugu told me that my aunt would be working late tonight, and she'd make dinner for us. Well, she didn't exactly say that. She said "mom" instead of "aunt", but that's only because she doesn't know that we're not actually siblings yet.

I told her I'd just eat later and that I wanted to be alone with my thoughts for a while. So, I went up to my room and laid down. I sat that for what seemed like forever, just thinking to myself. That's when an idea hit me. I got up from my bed and moved across the room to my desk.

I opened one of the drawers on the desk and pulled out a stack of paper that hadn't been opened yet. I tore the packing from the stack of paper and sat it down on my desk. I then sat down at the desk and grabbed a pencil from the cup of pens and pencils that sat in the corner of my desk. I wrote down three words, centered at the top of the page. I had a great idea. And that idea started with the words: The Death Game.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that is it for this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed!

* What did you guys think of Asuna's reaction to Sachi being alive? How about the backstory of them all finding each other in real life? Was it nice of Kirito to build a shrine for the Moonlit Black Cats?

* What do you think Kirito's idea is? Before I go, I just want to say that I realize that I'm not following the Anime's timeline anymore. But I promise, I will adapt the Fairy Dance story arc, that is if you guys want me to.

* That's going to do it for me. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye!

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Guest Review (Chapter 15):_

 _I did not know it was a webnovel, I knew it was a light novel. and learn it surprised me and not in a good way! my problem is that just in the novel, Sachi's death seemed forced and had only one goal put Kirito and Asuna as a couple!_

 _which only reinforced my impression that Kirisuna was ... forced! and that's exactly what I blame: I would have appreciated that Sachi had better development? or had the same development as Asuna?_

 _I would make you notice that she is the only girl of the harem to die in Sao! All of them, especially Asuna, benefit from the "legendary armor plot". Secondly, people only seem to see Asuna and totally ignore Sachi as if she had never existed!_

 _and it is precisely that I regret, to see an umpteenth Kirisuna while Sachi is still alive leaves me a bitter taste in the mouth ... there is Progressive which is a rewrite of the light novel, which tells the progression of Aincrad floor by floor, add new content and deepens the relationship between Kirito and Asuna._

 _I would have liked and especially appreciated that the author chooses a way similar to Progressive. maybe by rewriting Sao, he didn't have time to do it? hence the rewrite? anyway, for me it's too late, I deeply dislike Kirisuna ..._

 _in this chapter, Suguha confesses her love to Kirito who decides to accept her, before kicking Asuna out of his life and dating Suguha! oops wrong fic! a fan extremely disappointed and bitter to see yet another umpteenth Kirisuna fic! especially Sachi is still alive, the bitterness is only greater!_

To start, I'll say that you're not entirely wrong. I do actually agree with you, in terms of Sachi. I dislike how Sachi was forgotten about, except for a few key areas, in the Anime. Sachi is also not mentioned at all in book one of the light novel, if memory serves correctly.

I can understand where you're coming from and I'd even like to see Kirito end up with Sachi, but I won't go there in my story, I'm sorry. Maybe I'm biased and I like Kirisuna too much, but it's the only pairing for me said and simple. And you obviously don't agree with me.

And that's cool! I understand if you don't agree with me. In fact, I'd rather you read another story if you don't like mine, because if you keep reading it and you don't like it, there's almost no point to doing so. So, by all means go find a story to read that you'd enjoy, because while I would rather you read my story, I don't want you reading it if you don't like it. Regardless, thanks for the review, as always.

 _Swordyoshi (Chapter 15): Now that I read this story, I wish SAO had this instead. That how much I like this story. You got this story right on the money. Also for Sachi, yes. She lives in this one. So woohoo. Keep going my friend, I want to see more of this one. That is all for now. Swordyoshi out._

Thank you, Swordyoshi. I'm glad that you really like this story and I'm especially glad that you like how Sachi survived. When I began coming up with ideas, one of those ideas was leaving Sachi alive, just to have her killed off in the final chapter of Aincrad.

But then I realized that I wanted to keep her around after Aincrad and so, I still decided to kill her off, but Klein would use the revival item to bring her back, since Kirito doesn't die in my version. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kazuto let's Suguha in on his idea and they begin to work on a project in secret. As the one year anniversary of the SAO Incident nears, Kazuto reveals his idea to his friends.


	17. Chapter 17: The Death Game

Chapter 17: The Death Game

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Seventeen! This is the final chapter that will lead up to the Fairy Dance story arc, but once again, only if you guys want me to adapt Fairy Dance as well.

* I will also say that this chapter may be a little hard to follow in the beginning, so I immediately want to apologize for that.

* Anyway, that's all I'll say. Let's get right down into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _March 13_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

I heard my alarm beginning to beep. I got up from my desk and walked over to my nightstand. I shut off my alarm before I went back to sit at my desk. I continued writing on the pages of paper that I had been writing on all night last night. That's right. I hadn't slept at all last night. I was up all night and to keep myself awake; I had drunk a few cups of coffee at the most.

I continued working as the morning went on. I don't know how much time passed but eventually, there was a knock at my door.

"Come in." I called out.

The door opened.

"Big brother," I heard Sugu's voice. "Breakfast is ready!"

I let out a sigh and didn't turn to look at her.

"I'll be right there."

I heard the door close behind me as I stood up from my desk, putting down my pencil as I went. I picked up the cup that sat on my desk and took it with me as I left the room. I walked downstairs to the kitchen, where Sugu was sitting alone at the table, waiting for me.

"No Mom?" I asked.

She shook her head.

"She left early this morning." She said. "It's just us for today."

I went over to the coffee maker and put the pot on. I walked over to the table and sat down. I began to shovel food into my mouth, as Sugu watched on with surprise.

"Hungry, aren't you?" she asked.

I shook my head.

"No, just in a hurry." I said. "I've been busy."

"Busy with...?"

"I just have a new project that I'm working on."

Sugu was silent for a few seconds.

"A new project?"

I nodded.

"Can you tell me about it?"

I considered her request.

"Maybe later." I said at last.

After that, we began to eat in silence. I don't know how much time had passed, but eventually I heard a ding from the coffee maker. I got up from the table and poured my coffee into my cup. Once I had made the rest of it, I sat back down at the table and took a sip, despite how hot it was.

"Need to wake up?" Sugu asked.

I shook my head.

"No, I need to stay awake." I said.

"You need to stay awake?" Sugu asked, this time with notable concern in her voice.

I nodded.

"What do you mean by that?"

I sat in silence, trying to decide if I should tell her that I hadn't slept at all last night.

"Kazuto?"

I let out a sigh and finally looked up at her.

"I... I didn't sleep at all last night."

Sugu didn't say anything. She just looked at me with surprise.

"If you're gonna scold me, just do it, Sugu."

She still didn't say a word. Seconds past before she finally spoke.

"You should finish your breakfast." She said in a shaky voice. "And you should go get some sleep. Don't drink the coffee."

"Probably." I said as I took another drink from the cup.

She just looked at me.

"And you're not going to take my advice, are you?"

I put my cup back and I shook my head.

"Nope."

She regarded me with a strange look.

"Why?"

"I'm too busy to sleep."

I raked the last of my breakfast into a small pile on my plate and scooped it up. Once I had swallowed the last of my breakfast, I got up with my plate in hand.

"Thanks for breakfast, Sugu." I replied as I placed my plate in the sink.

I walked back to the table and grabbed my cup. I turned to look back at her.

"If you need me, I'll be in my room."

I then departed from the kitchen. I returned to my room and sat back down at my desk. I looked down at the papers that I had been writing on. I had easily written at least fifty pages the previous night, front and back. And I continued working.

I grabbed another blank sheet of paper and I began to write. I don't know how much time passed; it could have been hours. But eventually, I heard my door open behind me once more.

"Kazuto, I'm going to the store and pick up a few things." Sugu replied. "Do you need anything?"

I stopped writing as I turned to look at her over my shoulder.

"Yeah, I need another stack of paper." I said.

She gave me a strange look.

"Why do you need so much paper?"

I turned back around and continued writing.

"I'll let you know when I'm ready to."

Sugu didn't say anything for a second.

"Okay."

I eventually heard my door close behind me again. I turned back to the papers on my desk and got back to work.

 _A Few Hours Later_

Sugu eventually returned and despite my unwillingness to answer, she bought another stack of paper as I had requested. As I continued to work, my phone began to ring from its spot across the desk from me. I picked up my phone and looked at the caller ID. Asuna was calling. I let out a sigh before I answered.

"Hello?" I asked after bringing the phone up to my ear.

"Hey, Kirito!" Asuna greeted me from her end. "Do you want to meet up for lunch or something?"

"As much as I'd like to, I really don't have time today." I said.

"Oh, okay. Well, I could come over there!"

"No, I'm really too busy today."

Asuna went silent for a few seconds.

"Too busy to spend time with your girlfriend?" she eventually asked in a low tone.

"I... I just do not have time today, Asuna. I'm sorry."

Asuna eventually let out a sigh.

"Okay. Well, I guess I'll talk to you later then."

"I'm really sorry."

"I'm sure you are." Asuna said in a disappointed tone, before she hung up.

I let out a sigh as I rested my phone against my forehead.

 _Did I just mess up things with Asuna?_

I sighed once again as I returned to work. I continued to work throughout most of the day but right before dinner, I finally fell asleep. I was woken up to the sound of knocking on my door.

"Dinner!" I heard Sugu call from the other side of my door.

I sat up and rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

"I'll be right down." I said.

I sat up straight and I looked down at my desk, to see that there was a puddle of dried drool on the papers I had been writing on.

"Oh, man!" I said as I stood up and grabbed the papers.

I looked them over and saw the third paper may be able to be used, but I'd have to rewrite at least the first two papers. I let out a sigh.

"Oh, man that sucks." I muttered.

I completely forgot that it was dinner time and sat back down at the desk. I picked up a few new pieces of paper and placed them down on a dry spot on the desk, as I wiped the drool away with my shirt. I had been rewriting the pages for about a minute or so, before I heard Sugu shout from downstairs.

"Kazuto! It's dinner time! Get down here!"

"I'll be there in a second!" I called back.

I let out a sigh as I dropped my pencil and stood up from the desk. I left my room and walked downstairs to the kitchen. My plate had already been made and was sitting at my spot on the table. I sat down at the table and began to eat.

"So, what has you so busy that made you not come down here the first time I called you?" Sugu eventually asked.

"I'm just working on something." I said, without looking up at her.

"Working on what?"

I didn't answer.

"What, you're not going to tell me?"

I sighed.

"Suguha," I said her first name instead of her nickname. "I'll tell you what I'm working on once I'm ready to."

She didn't say another word. I finished up my dinner after a few minutes and stood up.

"Thanks." I said as I carried my plate to the sink.

I put my plate in the sink and then left the kitchen without another word to Sugu.

 _The Next Day_

I worked throughout the night and once again, I didn't go to bed. I kept myself awake with coffee. I had written at least one hundred pages at this point, probably more than that, actually. I was working as usual when I heard a knock at my door. I let out a sigh.

"Come in." I said out loud.

I heard the door open behind me and I turned around to see Sugu and Asuna standing in the doorway.

"Asuna came by." Sugu replied.

I was confused.

"I didn't invite her over." I said.

"No, I did." She said. "I thought if she came over, she might be able to get you out of your room."

Asuna just looked at me with worry, not saying anything.

"I'll leave you to it, Asuna." she said as she left the room, leaving us alone.

Asuna and I stared at each other for a few minutes, before I turned away and went back to writing.

"You sounded like you weren't happy to see me." Asuna replied from behind me.

"I'm just very confused." I said as I began writing again.

"There are dark circles beneath your eyes, Kirito. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

Asuna was silent for a few seconds after that and I eventually heard her approach me.

"What are you working on?"

"I'll let you know when I'm done with it."

"When will you be done with it?"

"I don't know."

After that, Asuna went silent and I continued writing. Eventually she cleared her throat.

"Okay, let's go."

I turned back around to look at her.

"Let's get you out of the house. Maybe some fresh air will do you some good."

 _Later_

The next couple hours were like a blur. After she eventually convinced me to get out of the house for an hour or two, Asuna and I went to Agil's Café for lunch. And that's about all I remember of that. Well, I remember talking with Asuna and then everything went black. I shouldn't be very surprised. I went a day and a half without sleep. When I finally came to, I was lying down and the first thing I saw was Asuna's face above me.

"What happened?" I asked.

"You passed out mid-sentence." She said. "You must have been really tired. You didn't even wake up during the time that I carried you home."

I was surprised by that part.

"How long was I out?"

"About an hour or so." Asuna replied as she sat up on my bed. "You haven't even been home for over half an hour."

I sighed.

"Thanks for getting me home." I said as I sat up. "I have to get back to work now."

Asuna put her hand on my chest and pushed me back down.

"I don't think so." She said. "You need to sleep."

"No, I need to work!"

"No!" Asuna said in a stern tone. "Suguha told me that you haven't slept in a couple days! I don't care how important your project is to you, you need to sleep!"

I stared up at her as her gaze on me relaxed.

"Will you stay with me?" I asked.

A light pink tint came to her cheeks.

"What?" she asked.

"Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?"

She just stared down at me as she blushed.

"Kirito, my dad will be very upset if he finds out that I stayed here with you."

"I didn't say anything about you sleeping over."

She just continued to look at me. I took her hand as I stared up at her.

"Please?"

She finally sighed and gave in.

"Oh, alright." She said as she laid down next to me. "But only until you fall asleep."

"Thank you."

Asuna laid there on my bed and eventually, I fell asleep once again.

 _March 28_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

I let out a sigh as I put my pencil down. I had finally finished my project. I got up from my desk and went to flop down on my bed. I needed to rest for a few minutes.

"Just a couple of minutes." I muttered to myself.

Asuna and I hadn't talked that much since the day she came to see me. And I didn't pull any more all-nighters. I tried to sleep a maximum of seven hours a night. Even though I had mostly gotten back to normal, Sugu was still concerned about me.

I got up from my bed and picked up the stack of paper that was sitting on my desk. And it was a big stack. I had written at least one hundred pages. Who knows? It may have been more than that. I walked to my door and left my room. I walked over to the door to Sugu's room and knocked. After a few seconds, her door opened, and she stepped out to look at me.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Can I come in?" I asked in return.

She nodded and opened her door all the way, before backing up. I walked into her room as she sat down on her bed.

"I finished it." I said in an excited tone.

She looked at me with confusion.

"Finished what?" she asked.

"The project that I had been stressing over for the last two weeks!" I said. "Here, take a look."

I handed her the stack of papers and she looked the over page over for a few seconds.

"The Death Game?" she asked as she looked up at me.

I nodded.

"What is it?"

"It's a script. I want to turn it into a story. And I want you to provide the art."

She looked confused.

"Why me?"

"Because you have the best drawing skill out of everyone I know."

She looked down at the floor, not saying anything.

"Sugu?" I asked with concern.

She continued to stare at the floor before she looked back up at me.

"I'll think about it."

"At least read the first chapter? Please, Sugu. This means a lot to me!"

"It obviously does if you spent so much time on it."

We both went silent after that. After a few seconds of standing there, Sugu looked up at me with an expectant gaze.

"What?" I asked.

"I'm not going to read it with you standing there!"

I put my hands up.

"Okay, I'll leave. But please, just think about it!"

I walked out of her room and back to mine. I walked into my room and sat down on my bed. Then, I began to wait.

 _The Next Day_

I sat in my room at my computer, when I heard a knock on my door.

"Come in." I said.

I turned my chair around as my door opened and Sugu walked in. I looked at her expectantly.

"Well?" I asked.

"I read the first three chapters." She said.

"And?"

"I'm in. I'll do it."

"Really?" I asked as I stood up. "You will?"

She nodded.

"This thing seems important to you and now I see why. I want to help make it a reality."

"Thank you, Sugu."

She nodded.

"So, where do we start?"

I began to think to myself.

"I don't know. The main thing is that we need money. I'm sure that Agil would be willing to pay me to work part-time at the Dicey Café. So, that takes care of that."

"Well, I can draw you and Asuna no problem. But what about Agil, Sachi, Klein, Liz and Silica? What about them? I haven't seen them as much as I've seen Asuna."

"That shouldn't be a problem. I should be able to get some pictures of them to give you something to work with."

"Anything else?"

"We're going to need to find a good publisher, but that's primarily what the money is for."

"When do we start?"

"Well, I'd like to start as soon as possible. But if you want to wait, that's fine."

Sugu was silent for a few seconds.

"Let's start after lunch today. Is that okay with you?"

I nodded.

"Yeah, that's fine."

After a few seconds, Sugu turned to leave the room. Before she could however, something hit me.

"Hold on a second, Sugu, I almost forgot. What about school? Are you going to have time to help me with this?"

She turned her head to look at me with a smile on her face.

"Don't worry about that, big brother. If this thing is that important to you, I can be flexible. I can balance my time for both you and school."

"Okay, then. Will you come get me once lunch is ready?"

She nodded before leaving the room.

 _Later That Day_

"So, how is this going to work?" Sugu asked.

Sugu sat at her desk while I sat at a round table that I had brought in from downstairs.

"You focus on all of the art and you draw what I tell you to draw." I said. "We're just focusing on storyboard for right now. I'll go back later and add the dialogue."

"Okay. Sounds good to me."

 _April 4_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

About a week or so had passed since Sugu and I had started our project. I was busy working on adding dialogue to the storyboard that she had been working on when she came to talk to me.

"Hey Kazuto, do you have a second?"

"Yeah, what do you need?"

"I've been working on concept art for the cover. Do you want to see?"

I stopped writing and put my pencil down, before standing up.

"Sure. Let's see what you got."

Sugu led me over to her desk where she had been working and I looked down at a really detailed sketch.

"Well?" Sugu asked in a curious tone, as well as sounding nervous.

After looking at it for a few seconds, I spoke.

"It's great. We'll use that one."

"Are you sure? I have other ideas."

"Absolutely. That one fits. I want to use it. You did a good job."

"You really like it?"

"Yeah. I think it's good." I said as I patted her on the back. "Good job, Sugu."

We stood there for a few seconds in silence.

"Well," I said, breaking the silence. "Back to work."

I turned away from Sugu and went back to my table.

"So, did you get pictures of the gang?" Sugu asked me after a few questions.

"Yeah, but it wasn't easy."

"What do you mean?"

"Okay, well getting pictures of Agil and Klein were easy. Pictures of Sachi, Silica and Lisbeth on the other hand weren't so easy to get."

"How so?"

"They willingly handed them over, however they looked at me as though I were perverted, especially Lisbeth."

"Ouch."

"Well, what can you expect? I was pretty vague about it."

"You couldn't have even given them a hint?"

"Nope."

"Wow. You are really keeping this thing close to your chest, aren't you?"

"Yep."

After that, Sugu went quiet. And so, we went back to work in silence.

 _November 6_ _th_ _, 2025 – The Dicey Café_

So, nearly a year had passed since SAO's end. Surprisingly, school still hadn't started. Tomorrow would mark the one year anniversary. Everyone decided to meet up at Agil's café to sort of celebrate and reminisce about the time we spent in SAO. It was the only time that all of us were available and so, we couldn't meet up tomorrow.

Thursday was the perfect day for all of us to meet up, even if it was around the middle of the week. And as well, Asuna and I were close to our one year anniversary. We'd probably get lunch sometime tomorrow or do something. But right now, we were heading in to see our friends. Asuna and I walked hand-in-hand up to the door and I opened it, revealing a dark café.

"Um, are we early, Asuna?" I asked. "Too late?"

"I don't know." She said as she let go of my hand and stepped inside.

"Asuna, where are you going?" I spoke as I lost sight of her in the darkness. "There's no one here!"

I didn't get an answer. I stepped forward and allowed the door to close, snuffing out the limited amount of light that there had been. Not hearing anything, I took another step forward.

"Asuna?" I called out.

When I still didn't get an answer, I had to admit that I was getting a little unnerved by this. That's when the lights to the café came on, momentarily blinding me.

"Surprise!" a chorus of voices exclaimed. "Congratulations on beating SAO, Kirito!"

All of our friends were here, plus some people that I hadn't seen in a while. Klein and Agil were here. Asuna had gone to stand with Lizbeth, Silica and Sachi. I think I also saw Thinker and Yulier in the room. There was also another guy in the room that I thought I recognized, however, I couldn't tell where I knew him from. After the cheer, I was blasted with confetti and a sign that said, "congratulations" was unveiled. Asuna giggled as she approached me.

"We really surprised you, didn't we?" she asked before kissing my cheek.

I just looked at her, before looking back at the rest of the people in the room.

"Why didn't we have this earlier?" I finally asked.

"Because," Agil spoke as he walked up to us. "You've been so busy with this project of yours, that you're never available!"

"Which you still haven't told me about." Asuna said in a curious tone.

"Or us." Sachi chimed in.

I chuckled.

"What can I say?" I asked. "I'm a mysterious guy."

"No, you're not." Asuna replied.

"Okay, so maybe I'm not." I said in return.

 _One Hour Later_

An hour of conversations had passed and now Klein, Sachi, Lizbeth, Silica and I were all sitting at a table.

"Tell me something, Kazuto." Lisbeth said.

I looked up at her.

"What?"

"Do you actually think Kayaba was content in the end? Do you think he actually set himself up to lose?"

I looked back down at the surface of the table and began to think.

"Has time made you change your mind, Kirito?" Asuna asked.

I shook my head.

"No, no. No. I never said that he set himself up to lose."

"Which is it?"

I looked back up.

"I do believe that he was content with losing. I think he realized that we were running out of time in the real world. I think he wanted to lose. I think in that moment, he realized that there had to be an endgame at some point."

"So, you think he let you win?"

I nodded.

"And that's what you believe?"

"Yep. Is that hard to believe?"

"No, just curious."

Silence fell between us all and eventually my phone began to ring. Asuna gave me a look.

"You left your phone on?" she asked.

I shrugged as I pulled my phone out to look at it. My caller ID told me that it was Sugu.

"It's my cousin, Sugu. I have to take this." I said as I answered. "Hello?"

"They're ready." Sugu said on the other end.

My eyes widened with surprise and excitement.

"Really?" I asked as I stood up. "You're kidding me!"

"I am not kidding."

"That's great! I'll see you soon!"

"Okay, see you soon."

I hung up and put my phone away. They all looked at me with confusion.

"I uh, have to go." I said as I grabbed my jacket from my chair. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Where are you going?" Sachi asked as she watched me go.

"I-I just have to go take care of something." I said as I moved towards the door. "I'll be back soon."

"But, Kirito..." I heard Asuna begin to speak, but I was already moving out the door.

 _Asuna_

I let out a sigh as I turned around and rested my chin in my hand.

"Don't worry, he'll be back." Sachi assured me.

"He just walked out while I was talking..." I said in disbelief.

"Don't worry, we'll give him an hour." Klein said with a smile.

"Hour and a half tops." Agil spoke from his place at the bar.

I looked at them with a small smile.

"Thanks, guys." I replied.

 _Kirito_

 _An Hour and a Half Later – The Dicey Café_

I finally made it back to Agil's café after an hour and a half, now having a bag with me. I walked through the door, panting from all the running I had been doing. I looked around the café, to see that only Agil, Asuna, Klein, Sachi, Silica and Lizbeth remained.

"Thinker and Yulier?" I asked. "What about everyone else?"

"They all left." Klein said. "We were the only ones willing to wait as long as we did."

"Where have you been?" Asuna finally spoke in a bitter tone.

Although I was taken back by her tone, I spoke as I stepped forward, nonetheless.

"I told you, I had stuff to do."

"You were gone for an hour and a half, Kirito." Lizbeth spoke.

"Let's just let him know that we were going to just leave soon." Klein chimed in.

"Hey, I get that." I said. "That's fine. But this was important to me."

No one said a word.

"I get that you guys want an explanation from me." I said as I walked up to the table. "And you're going to get one."

I opened my bag and began to pull out packages, placing one in front of everyone at the table.

"What are these?" Klein was the first to ask.

"Consider this my present to you for our anniversary." I told Asuna as I sat one down in front of her. "As for the rest of you, Christmas is coming up soon, so consider it an early gift for the holiday."

I had just finished passing out the packages to everyone at the table, when Agil spoke from the bar.

"Hey, don't I get one?"

I turned to look at him.

"Oh, yeah man. Totally!" I said as I walked over to the bar, with the final package. "Here you go."

"Thanks." He said as I placed it down on the counter.

"What are these?" Klein asked as he picked up his package and shook it, as if it were a box of Legos.

"Well, why don't you guys open them and find out?" I asked.

 _Asuna_

All of our packages were wrapped in a light brown colored low quality wrapping paper, which was held together by a thin length of rope. I took hold of the end of the rope and began to pull, loosening the knot as everyone else did the same. Once I had gotten the rope off, I pulled the wrapping paper off. And I was surprised when I saw highly detailed cover art of the book that I was holding. It was extremely detailed.

At the top of the cover, the words "The Death Game" were displayed. And the cover art, like I said, was detailed. It depicted me, Kirito, Klein, Agil, Sachi, Lizbeth and Silica, all in the form of our SAO avatars on the left side. And on the right side, were most of the monsters that we had faced during our time in SAO. And standing behind all the monsters, looking the biggest and the most dangerous, was Akihiko Kayaba, in his Heathcliff guise.

All of us had our weapons drawn and it looked like we were about to go to war. I had to say that once again, it was very detailed, and I liked that. But I was also confused. I looked up at Kirito, who looked back down at me with a proud look on his face.

"What?" I asked with confusion.

 _Kirito_

When Asuna asked me "what" in confusion, my smile dropped.

"What do you mean, what?" I asked.

Before she could answer, Klein spoke.

"Is this what I think it is?" he asked as he flipped through the book.

"I recognize these pages." Lisbeth spoke next as she looked through her copy. "All of these moments actually happened, beat for beat!"

"No kidding? This isn't just familiar." Klein replied, before looking up at me. "This is the story of SAO!"

I gestured at the cover of the book.

"Well, you see that at the bottom of the cover, I point out that this is based off of the real life SAO incident."

"Why?" Sachi spoke up.

I turned to look at her.

"What?" I asked.

"Why would you write a story based off of SAO?" she asked. "Why would you tell it as it really happened?"

I looked at her with a confused glance and I continued looking at her before Asuna began to speak.

"I think what she means is that SAO is a tragedy." She said as I turned to look at her. "So, why would you write a story based off of a tragedy?"

I turned back to look at Sachi, to see that she nodded. Silica chimed in next.

"A lot of people died in SAO, Kirito. Not all of us made it back. Are you sure that you're doing the right thing? I just don't think that making money off of the tragedy is a good idea."

I looked at all of my friends, who all showed the same expressions, even Agil. And they weren't expressions of approval.

"What's in a tragedy?" I asked. "Titanic, Pompeii. It doesn't matter what tragedy you're talking about, one way or another, stories are going to come out of it. It's basic human nature for us to tell stories."

"We get that." Asuna spoke. "But why SAO? Lots of players died, Kirito!"

"Asuna, that's what makes a tragedy a tragedy! People are going to die! And I acknowledge that people died in SAO!"

No one said a word. Everyone just looked confused. I eventually let out a sigh.

"Just turn to the last several pages. The pages that are dark gray."

"This things gotta be at least three hundred pages." Klein muttered as he flipped through it.

"Oh, it's definitely a hundred pages at least." I said.

They all turned to the last several pages, which were dark gray as I had said. And on these pages, listed in alphabetical order, were the victims that had died, with their avatar names accompanied by their real names.

"A memorial?" Lisbeth asked.

"I uh, wasn't expecting that." Klein chimed in.

"Where did you get all of these names?" Asuna asked as she looked up at me.

"Kikuoka Seijirou, the representative from the SAO Case Victims Rescue Force helped me out. He was able to get a hold of some of the data that was left over from SAO. Like all of the victims that died in SAO, their avatar names and real world names."

"And you used that data to make a memorial?"

I nodded.

"Why?"

"Because, even though I'm telling the story of SAO, I want to make it abundantly clear that real people died in this game and didn't get to return to the real world."

"But why tell the story of SAO?" Klein asked.

"Our time in SAO wasn't all bad. There were good times that we had. And I have to make sure that people know what really happened in there! And I can't just sit back and allow SAO to be the death of the VRMMORPG genre!"

"I thought you said that you didn't care about the genre anymore?" Asuna asked.

"Oh, I don't. I don't want to go back to the genre after SAO!" I said as I looked at her. "But I know that some other people may want to know what the genre is like and to really give it a try! Hopefully, if I show them that SAO wasn't all bad, people will realize that SAO doesn't have to be the end of the genre!"

"And what would you rather them do?" Sachi asked.

"I would much rather the genre not die out! I'm sure there are still people out there who would want to put on a headset and take the full dive! While my time is over, I feel like the general public is just getting started! I think that the genre should live on as a whole!"

"Like that game that started its open beta some time ago?" Agil asked.

"Yeah!" Klein chimed in. "What's that game called anyway?"

"I think it's called, "Alfheim Online"." Agil said.

"Yeah, man, there you go!" I said as I looked at Agil and then back at the group. "See, there's already another VRMMORPG in development! This can't be the end of the genre! It has to be a new beginning."

"So, while you don't want anything to do with the genre, you'd want to see it flourish, rather than fail?" Asuna asked. "Am I getting that right?"

"Exactly." I said.

"But I'm still curious." Lisbeth spoke up. "Why do this?"

"Because I want people to see that SAO doesn't have to be the end of the genre. I think if people can see that it wasn't always bad while we were in SAO, if people see that we maintained our sanities and the fact that we formed friendships and bonds, maybe more people will be less afraid of the genre."

No one said anything at first.

"I mean, it probably has potential." Klein said at last.

"So, you see why I'm doing this?" I asked.

"I think so." He said. "Are you actually selling these? When do they ship out?"

"They ship out to stores tonight and will be up for sale tomorrow." I said. "Just in time for the one-year anniversary of the incident."

Meanwhile, Lisbeth spoke again, as she flipped through her copy.

"The drawings of us are really detailed. I actually look like, well, me!"

That's when she looked up at me with some expression, like she had just had a realization.

"That's what the pictures of us were for! That's why you asked for them!"

I nodded.

"You told me that you dabbled in manga earlier in your life and you said that you're drawing skills were terrible," Asuna spoke. "but this is actually really good!"

"No, no, no. Only the writing is me." I said. "Sugu provided the illustrations."

"When you said that she has a pretty good drawing skill, you weren't kidding."

"Who said I was?"

"So, that's why you asked to work for me?"

I turned to look at Agil.

"You asked to work for me so you could raise money to fund this thing?"

I nodded.

"Well, why didn't you just tell me what you needed the money for? I would have pitched in!"

"Yeah, man!" Klein chimed in. "I would have helped, too!"

I chuckled.

"I appreciate the thought, but I couldn't ask you guys for help." I said. "I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Well, consider us surprised." Silica replied.

Sachi and Lisbeth nodded in unison. Meanwhile, Asuna looked up at me.

"So, this was the project that you sleep deprived yourself to work on?"

I nodded.

"Why did you have to do that?"

"Because, it was important to me."

"How much do we owe you for these?" Klein asked.

I turned to look at him.

"What?" I asked.

"These books. How much do we owe you for them?"

I blinked.

"You don't owe me anything. They're free. They're gifts."

"Why aren't you making us pay for it?"

I gave him a strange look.

"Because you guys are my friends. Why can't you accept the fact that I don't need you to pay me?"

He shrugged.

"Look, I gave you guys copies because I want you guys to remember the good times we had while we were trapped in the game. While there were bad times, it wasn't all bad."

Asuna looked back at me.

"And you think that this is a good idea?"

I nodded.

"I think it's a great way to spread awareness about the incident. I think that after reading this, people may be able to understand what happened in there a little better."

They all looked at me without a word.

"What, do you guys think that it's not a good idea?"

No one said anything at first. Eventually, Asuna spoke, breaking the silence.

"I think it's a brave thing for you to try and do, but I'm not sure how it will go."

I continued to look at her, before looking at everyone else.

"Does everyone else feel the same way about this?" I asked.

Everyone began murmuring amongst each other, before they all eventually nodded at me in unison.

"It's a unique idea, Kiri-Dude." Klein replied. "I guess we'll see if it works."

He nodded at me after saying that. Eventually, not seeing what else to do, I nodded back.

 _Sometime Later_

I sat down at the bar as I let out a sigh.

"Pour me a drink, would you Agil?" I asked.

"Sure thing, brother!" he said as he beamed at me. "Do you have a preference?"

I shook my head.

"Just anything'll do."

Eventually Agil poured a drink for me and pushed it across the bar to me.

"Thanks." I said. "Man, I was really nervous about that reveal. I wasn't exactly sure what you guys would think."

"It's interesting. "Agil said as I took a sip from my drink. "And it's pretty nostalgic, as well. It's cool to reminisce and relive some of these events."

"Yeah." I said as I turned around to see Asuna still reading through the book.

Asuna had been reading the manga for the last ten or twenty minutes. I turned back to look at Agil.

"Well, it looks like Asuna can't get her head out of a book for once." I said.

"I heard that." Asuna said from behind me.

"You were supposed to." I replied.

I let out a sigh as I took another drink. Agil looked down at me.

"What?" I asked as I placed my glass onto the counter top.

"You know that game I mentioned, Alfheim Online?" he eventually asked.

"What about it?"

"Can I tell you something about it?"

I let out another sigh as I took another drink.

"Make it quick."

"Alfheim Online was made with some of the resources left over from SAO."

"Why would I care, Agil? I'm done with SAO. Just say what you're gonna say."

"Do you know who the rights and remaining resources were sold to?" he whispered.

I gave him a strange look.

"I don't really care to know." I said.

"You really don't want to know?"

"Don't know, don't care, couldn't care less."

Even though I had said that, Agil continued speaking. Or whispering, is more accurate to say.

"The guy that the rights and left over resources were sold to, his name is Sugou Nobuyuki."

"Why are you whispering? And should I know that name?"

When Agil didn't respond, I looked up at him. He had an expressionless face.

"What?" I asked.

He then gestured at something behind me. I turned around and saw Asuna, still reading from the book. I assumed that he was gesturing towards her as I turned back to look at him.

"What? Will you just tell me what you need to tell me already?" I asked with irritation, before looking back down at the counter top.

"This guy, Sugou Nobuyuki," Agil continued whispering. "he's Asuna's ex-boyfriend."

I looked up at him with surprise.

 _Author's Note:_

* Okay, I know that's a sort of cliché way to end it, but there it is. That's it for this chapter! I hope you all enjoyed!

* Is it right for Kirito to write a manga to spread awareness about the SAO Incident? I wanted to do something different and so, this is what I came up with. This is also why Kirito has a "manga backstory", if you want to call it that?

* What do you think of how I set up for the Fairy Dance story arc? Once again, I'll only adapt Fairy Dance if you guys want me to. So, as of right now, I'm just leaving the possibility of another adaptation open.

* So, if you think I missed anything, go ahead and let me know. I'm going to be taking a break from this story for a while. I think that's going to do it for me. So, I'm going to go, so have a fantastic day and bye.

Next Chapter: A month passes after the one year anniversary of the SAO Incident. Kirigaya believes that he has finished adjusting to life back in the real world; Asuna has seemingly disappeared from his life.


	18. Chapter 18: Return

Chapter 18: Return

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Eighteen, the beginning of the Fairy Dance arc! Originally, I was going to wait until July 13th to post this, but I figured you guys have waited long enough for a follow up. So, here it is, the first chapter of Fairy Dance!

* I don't want to give much away in terms of story, so I won't say anything. Alright, so let's get right into the chapter!

" _The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest of fear is fear of the unknown."_ – H.P. Lovecraft

 _Kirito_

Just outside of a cabin, Asuna and I sat in a rocking chair, snuggled up against one another as I read from a book. Or at least, I was trying to read from a book. Asuna had fallen asleep and was now resting her head on my shoulder.

I was currently trying not to give into the temptation of falling asleep as well. I gently put my arm around her, as to not wake her and looking up at the sky, I smiled. It was another beautiful day in Aincrad.

 _Wait, Aincrad? No. No!_

I began to see red as the world seemed to come to a stop around me. As I stood up from the rocking chair, now wearing my usual garb from the SAO days, I noticed that Asuna had disappeared. I began to look around my surroundings in a panic.

"Asuna!" I called out her name with worry.

I didn't get an answer. As I looked around my surroundings, I noticed that the world began to crumble and shatter around me. The cabin was gone in just a few mere seconds as the world shattered around me. Afterward, only the rocking chair and some parts of the surrounding fields and skies remained. The sky was blood red, sweat ran down my face and I could hear the roar of my heartbeat in my ears.

 _December 6_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

 _Ten Days Remaining_

I bolted upright in bed and threw the covers off me, breathing heavily as I did. Once I realized that it had just been a nightmare, my breath steadied a bit. I swung my legs around to the edge of the bed and put my feet on the floor as I rested my head in my hands. Once I eventually looked up, a shiny object across the room caught my eye.

I stood up and walked across the room, where I realized it was just my old NerveGear. I had honestly forgotten that the NerveGear sat on my shelf. I mean, it sat there on my shelf and I walked past it several times every day, but I didn't think about it very often. I stood there, just staring at it.

I was about to touch it, when the nightmare I had flashed through my mind. I reluctantly retracted my hand and returned to sit on my bed. I looked at my digital clock, which told me that it was just past seven in the morning. It was a Saturday and I could go back to bed if I wanted to, but after that nightmare, I didn't want to go back to sleep.

It hadn't been the first nightmare that I have had. They weren't common, they were sort of just every once and a while. Every once and a while, I would have a nightmare where I would be back in Aincrad. And I wasn't the only one who had this problem, obviously. My friends all occasionally had nightmares as well. To describe these dreams and the issues they created, we eventually made up the term "Post Traumatic Aincrad Disorder", or "PTAD" for short.

It had been over a year since SAO ended and the victims still hadn't gone back to school. However, our break wouldn't last much longer. Once we got back to the real world, the government decided that all of the survivors should have the same amount of time off. Well, at least the student-aged victims.

The government took in mind that for the children and adolescent teens that had been trapped in SAO, it may take longer for them to recover from the incident. Well, it did take longer for some victims to recover, opposed to others. For the stronger-willed victims, like Asuna, Agil, Klein and the rest of my friends, it didn't take long for them to recover.

Those victims were able to return to real life within months. Eventually, the government decided that all-school aged victims would be off for a full year and that we would all go to school together, so we all had that one thing in common and if need be, could bond over the incident's impact.

Although school still had not started, we wouldn't be on break for much longer. We had less than a week and a half before we returned to school. School was back in session on the fifteenth, that Monday. So, yeah. That's almost a week that we have left. Although Christmas Break was coming up, we were just going to school for a few days of what basically would be orientation.

I looked around the room before I decided to leave. The small room only had three pieces of furniture. My desk, where my computer was at, my bed and my shelf rack on the wall, where my NerveGear sat, along with a picture and my personal copy of the manga. I walked downstairs and into the kitchen to get a bottle of water.

From there, I walked outside to the front yard, where Sugu was practicing her Kendo for the morning. She didn't even notice me as I sat down with a bottle of mineral water in my hand. I sat down on the deck and watched her for a few minutes. Eventually after one stroke, she turned her head a bit and noticed me. I smiled at her.

"Morning, Sugu." I said.

"Good morning!" she said in return.

I tossed the water bottle at her, which she must not have anticipated, because she fumbled with it before finally catching it. She shot me an annoyed glance.

"Seriously?" she asked. "Instead of lurking, you should have said something!"

"Yeah, well, you were practicing, and I didn't want to bother you."

"I wasn't really practicing." She admitted as she walked over and sat down beside me, resting her bamboo sword next to me. "I guess it's just habit, is all."

"Well," I said as I picked up the sword. "At least you're keeping it up."

I held it out in front of me, my hands shaking as I held it. As I held it, one of the many fights that I engaged in while in SAO flashed before my eyes. I dropped the sword immediately and stared at my shaking hands.

"Are you okay?" Sugu asked.

I didn't answer, as I continued staring at my hands.

"Kazuto?"

Sugu's voice finally brought me back to reality.

"Yeah." I said as I turned to look at her with a smile on my face. "I'm fine."

She looked at me as if she didn't believe me, before eventually smiling back at me.

"It kinda feels light, though." I said.

Sugu's smile disappeared as I said that.

"What? It's not light!" she said. "It's timber bamboo!"

"Eh, swords in SAO were never this light."

"You're talking about a weapon in a video game. That's made up of ones and zeroes."

"Fair point. But still..."

Sugu let out a frustrated sigh.

"They are not light!"

"Okay, fine. You win."

I grabbed the water bottle between us since she hadn't yet, opened it and began drinking from it.

"Hey." Sugu asked as she patted my shoulder. "Do you think we could give it a go?"

I looked at her as I retracted the bottle from my lips.

"What do you mean? A match?"

"Yeah!"

"Um, Sugu? It's been over a year since SAO. My sword skills are pretty rusty."

She didn't take no for an answer. She got up and walked in front of me. She looked down at me with a smile as she forcefully pulled me to my feet.

"Then this is the perfect chance for you to get back in the saddle!"

I looked at her with a nervous gaze in my eyes.

"I'm not sure about this."

"Just come on! Don't think! Let's go!"

Sugu began to drag me through the house towards the dojo, not even giving me a chance to respond. Speaking of Sugu, I should talk about our project: The Death Game. The manga adaptation of the SAO incident. In the month since its release, it has sold like hotcakes. It seems like I've been praised for telling the story of what really happened in there. Or at least, shed light on the stuff my friends and I experienced.

Obviously, I couldn't hit every little detail of every little thing that happened in SAO, but I told the story of our experiences. The earnings that I receive off of it, I split evenly between Sugu and myself. Sugu has been saving up her portions for after high school and I've mainly been giving away my earnings to charity, just like I used to. I never wanted to profit off of a tragedy. I just wanted to enlighten people to what actually happened.

Sugu and I stood across from each other in the dojo, decked out in our protective, padded gear.

"Sugu, I'm not entirely sure about this." I said in a nervous tone as I held my practice sword.

"Oh, come on!" she said. "I'll start slowly just for you!"

"Don't patronize me." I grumbled.

Just from muscle memory, I guess, I got into the stance that I had always used in SAO. From under her helmet, I could see Sugu drop her serious expression. And then, she began to giggle as she lowered her practice sword.

"What kind of stance is that supposed to be?"

"Don't you worry about it. Besides, you did the art for The Death Game. You've seen my sword stance."

Sugu's serious face returned.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe we shouldn't do a match."

I just grinned.

"Come on Sugu, are you serious? We're already here. Let's go!"

"Okay, if you think you're ready."

My grin remained.

"I'm ready, Sugu!"

That's the thing. I _wasn't_ ready. As soon as Sugu took one step forward, I propelled myself forward. Sugu blocked my strike and when she tried to strike me, I blocked her strike in turn. It was as if we were dancing. It may be hard to believe, but every strike she threw at me, I deflected perfectly, as if no time at all had passed after SAO.

Strike after strike, I either dodged or deflected. Eventually, our blades clanged together, and we stared at each other, both of us with looks of determination, neither of us daring to break the contact. And then, it happened. The scene flashed in front of my eyes, going from dueling Sugu in the dojo, to dueling that one guy in SAO, the guy who wanted me dead.

I stepped back and the scene flashed again. Now, I was standing in the Seventy Fifth Floor Dungeon, battling with Akihiko Kayaba, in his Heathcliff guise. Or, at least I thought I was. Kayaba brought his sword backwards as he stared me down.

"Game over, Kirito!" he exclaimed.

He brought his sword forward and it impaled me through the chest. My eyes widened as I dropped my sword and took a shallow breath. As I stared up at Kayaba's face, it appeared to be distorted, before flashing back. I now saw Sugu's face once again, as she brought her bamboo sword down onto my head. I let out another shallow breath as I fell over.

"Kazuto!" I heard Sugu cry with worry.

I hit the floor, struggling to catch my breath as the world faded out from around me, causing everything to go black.

 _Sometime Later_

When I finally came to, I saw Sugu's worried face above me.

"Big brother, are you okay?" she asked.

I reached up and felt my head, to find that my helmet was now off.

"Okay, okay, you win." I said. "I guess I wasn't ready, after all!"

"Don't joke around like that! You had me really worried! Are you okay?! What happened?!"

I slowly began to sit up as I spoke.

"I was focused on the match with you and then suddenly, I saw myself back in SAO, dueling that guy who wanted me dead! And then, my vision shifted again, and I saw myself being killed by Heathcliff!"

Sugu's eyes widened in a panic.

"Oh my God, this wasn't a good idea! I shouldn't have put you up to this!"

"Sugu?"

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?"

"Um, because I could have used that against you?"

"I would have believed you!"

I said nothing.

"Are you alright?"

"Of course, I am, Sugu. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Remember what the doctors said? Some of the survivors will struggle to return to real life and some may not return at all."

"Sugu, what are you saying?"

"I think that while you're here in the real world, your mind is still in SAO. I also think that it's fair to say that part of you never left SAO."

"What? No, that's crazy talk! I'm completely here, Sugu!"

"Are you really? Think about it, big brother. While you kept your NerveGear, everyone else had to send theirs back in when they got recalled! That put them through a traumatic experience, so why would they want to hang on to it?"

"It's too nostalgic for me to let go of! I met all of my friends in SAO! I met _my girlfriend_ through SAO!"

"A girlfriend that won't talk to you anymore, sure."

I looked up at Sugu, as my expression changed to a glum one. I sighed as I looked down at the floor. It was true. Asuna hadn't spoken to me in at least a week, I think? Sugu looked down at me as an apologetic look in her eyes. She put out her hand.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have said that, big brother!" she said.

I took her hand and she helped me back up to my feet.

"No, it's alright. I know you didn't really mean anything by it."

"Are you sure that you'll be alright?"

I nodded.

"Yeah. All I need is to put an ice pack on my head for a while and I'll be good."

"We definitely should call it a day. And thanks for at least trying!"

As she said that, we were walking out of the dojo and I turned to face her with a smile on my face.

"No problem, Sugu!"

 _A Few Minutes Later_

Sugu and I stood outside the house and I paced around the yard, muttering to myself as Sugu ran her head under the water spigot.

"Let's see, my footwork was okay, but the attacks sucked." I whispered to myself. "I guess I can't use the sword skills I acquired unless I got the system open."

The water spigot turned off as Sugu stood up straight and looked at me with a concerned look.

"See? That right there is a sign, to me, that half of you is still living in the world of SAO."

"Drop it, Sugu!"

We both stared each other down, until a light smile came to her face.

"Well, I must say that I am surprised that you actually gave it a try again!"

"Eh, it was fun. I kind of reminded me what if felt like to fight in SAO!"

 _Not just to fight,_ I thought. _To fight for your life!_

I looked down at the ground as my smile disappeared.

"So, any chance that you might take up Kendo again?"

I continued staring at the ground as various battles that I took part in while trapped in SAO flashed before my eyes.

 _Jesus,_ I thought. _Here I am, acting like a veteran of war. It's as if I have PTSD!_

Well, we all had PTSD. None of us recognized it as such. Sugu snapped her fingers in front of my face.

"Kazuto?" she asked with worry. "Big brother?"

I snapped out of my daze and looked back at Sugu.

"Yeah? What is it?"

She gave me yet another look of concern.

"Are you sure that I didn't hit your head too hard?"

I nodded.

"Positive. Why? What is it?"

"I asked you a question and you weren't responding."

"Oh, sorry, I was thinking. What is it?"

"What were you thinking about?"

"It doesn't matter. What was your question?"

Sugu looked at me but answered, nonetheless.

"Is there any chance that you'll take up Kendo again?"

I looked back down at the ground.

"It's unlikely. It is fun, but..."

"Just not as fun as SAO, right?" Sugu interrupted as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Too a certain extent."

"Just promise me something."

"What?"

"If you decide to take it up again, you have to let me teach you!"

"Um, okay. Sure."

Sugu smiled as she pumped her fist into the air, closing her eyes as she did. After a minute or two more of standing outside, Sugu and I walked back inside the house.

"So, are you going anywhere today?" Sugu asked.

I stopped in my tracks.

"I guess I'll stop by Asuna's house." I said.

She stopped in her tracks as well and turned to face me.

"Do you think she'll be there? Do you think she'll actually talk to you?"

I just smiled in return at Sugu.

"She's going to have to talk to me at some point, right?"

She shrugged.

"Not necessarily, but I would hope that she eventually starts talking to you again!"

"Thanks, I appreciate that."

Afterwards, Sugu and I just stood there in silence. Eventually, I walked past Sugu and towards the stairs. If I was going to go to Asuna's house, I had to get dressed first. So, my family and I lived in an old-fashioned Japanese house. The house was situated in the southern region of Saitama Prefecture, which was a former castle town that still retained some of its archaic sights.

 _Five Minutes Later_

I sat on my bed, now fully dressed for the day, with my phone in my hand, scrolling through the list of texts that Asuna and I had sent to each other. It brought back good memories. For the most part, we had sent words of affection back and forth for about the last year. But about a week or week and a half ago, she just stopped.

Her last text that she had sent me: "I had a great time tonight! Good night, I'll see you later!"

After that, dozens of my text messages had gone unanswered. Tons of "heys" and "Asunas" were sent, but I never got a response. I considered calling 119, but I never did. I thought that she may be angered with me for some reason and that hopefully, she'd come around at some point.

Well, it had been a week and a half, and I still hadn't heard anything from her. So, I was beginning to get worried. I had decided that I was going to go over to her house and see if everything was okay. And if she really was mad enough that she would want to never speak to me again, fine. But the least she could do was tell me that in person. I got up from my bed, left the room and walked back downstairs to the living room, where Sugu was at.

"Hey, I'm going to head out." I said.

"Okay," she said as she turned to look at me. "If she's home and if she'll talk to you, will you tell her that I said hi?"

I nodded.

"Yeah, I'll do that. Okay, I'll see you later."

"Bye, big brother!"

"See you later, Sugu!"

I left the house and got on my way to Asuna's house.

 _Forty Five Minutes Later – Asuna's House_

I stood out front of Asuna's house. So, let's take a second to imagine Asuna's house. Compared to my house, she practically lived in a mansion! I mean, it was a nice house, pretty big and they had a well-kept yard. Asuna may have told me at some point that they had servants that kept the house in good shape.

And I may not have a say in it, but I don't like the concept of having servants. Their house also had a gate around it. I stepped up to the speaker on the gate and tapped the button. I waited for a few seconds and eventually, I heard a voice coming from the speaker.

"Who's there?"

"It's Kazuto." I said. "Kazuto Kirigaya."

"Who?"

"Um, Kazuto Kirigaya?"

I didn't get a response this time. I was seriously considering using the name "Kirito", until a second or two later, when I finally got a response.

"Just a second."

Eventually, the gates opened, and I walked into the yard, beginning my approach to the front door. I knocked on the door once I got there and hoped that Asuna would be the one to answer. That rarely happened, though. Most of the time, it would be the servants who answered the door.

 _Really, I'd like it if anyone but..._

I was in the middle of my thoughts as the front door finally opened.

 _Speak of the devil,_ I thought.

The guy I wanted to see the least was standing there. Asuna's father, Mr. Yuuki. I just stood there and looked at him, as he looked back at me. Eventually, I smiled the most awkward smile imaginable and greeted him.

"Uh, hey, Mr. Yuuki. How are..."

He interrupted me before I could finish my sentence.

"What are you doing here, Kirigaya?"

"Is Asuna here?" I asked. "She hasn't responded to any of my texts for about the last week and a half, so I was starting to get worried."

"My daughter is not here, Kirigaya. In fact, I was just about to say that I haven't seen her for the last week and a half."

Those words made it feel as though my heart came to a screeching halt and it had already been beating fast due to the confrontation with Mr. Yuuki. I looked at him with disbelief.

"A-Asuna is m-missing?!" I asked.

He nodded.

"Yes, she is. And if I don't see her again by tomorrow, I'm considering tipping you off to the police."

His words shook me to my core.

"What?" I asked with disbelief. "You think I have something to do with her disappearance?"

He didn't answer my question.

"What do you care if she's disappeared, Kirigaya? You said that you wouldn't be dating her anymore, anyway."

I was shocked and angered that he would get my words wrong like that.

"No, Mr. Yuuki, I never said that. I said that dating Asuna may not be worth it if I had to deal with you."

Mr. Yuuki sighed before he stepped backwards, away from me and back into the house.

"Go home, Kirigaya. If you come back to my house, I'll call the police, and have you arrested."

He closed the door behind him, and I just stood there, bewildered at what had just happened. I continued standing there, as I thought back to a confrontation I had with him recently. It was just a couple weeks before Asuna disappeared.

 _November 15_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

I had been hanging out with Klein all day and I finally decided to head home. When I walked in through the door, I immediately heard Sugu talking to someone in the living room.

"Oh, that's probably him now." She spoke. "Big brother, is that you?"

"Um, yeah?"

"Can you come in here? There's someone here to see you!"

I reluctantly walked into the living room and was shocked to see Sugu talking with Asuna's father, Mr. Yuuki. Upon seeing the look on my face, he turned to look at Sugu.

"Maybe I'll just come back another day."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded.

"Your brother seems like he's had a day. I'll come back another time. Thanks for the tea, Suguha-San."

"Um, sure."

Mr. Yuuki turned in my direction and began to walk past me.

"See you around, Kirigaya." He said as he patted my shoulder on the way out.

I felt unnerved as he walked out, as he had never been nice to me at all. I turned to look at Sugu.

"What was that all about?" I asked.

She shrugged and eventually, I just went upstairs to my room.

 _November 16_ _th_ _, 2025 – Kazuto's House_

The next day I went to have lunch at The Dicey Café with Sachi, Klein and Silica. Lisbeth was out trying to square away last minute things for school, so she couldn't make it. And Asuna was spending time with her family. So, our lunch had ended, and I was left to walk home alone, again. I walked through my yard, walked into the house and closed the door behind me.

"Sugu!" I called out as I walked towards the living room. "I'm..."

I stopped talking once I got into the living room and I saw Sugu sitting across the room from Mr. Yuuki.

"Home." I finished my sentence.

"Hey. Mr. Yuuki came by."

 _I can see that,_ I thought as I ignored the urge to roll my eyes.

"What is he doing here?" I asked in a calm tone.

Before Sugu could answer, Mr. Yuuki stood up and put out his hand.

"You know Kirigaya, you and I haven't really had the chance to get to know each other properly." He said.

I didn't take his hand.

"Well, that's because I don't want to get to know you, properly _or_ improperly. So, leave."

Mr. Yuuki looked surprised, but he didn't get angry. Eventually he held up his hands in defense.

"Hey, no problem."

He began to walk towards the front door, and I followed him, Sugu following closely behind me. Or at least I thought she was following me. Eventually, she curved her path and walked towards the kitchen. As she did that, I began to climb the stairs to my room. Once Sugu was in the kitchen and out of sight, Mr. Yuuki began speaking to me in his usual cold tone.

"I just want to give you a heads up, Kirigaya. My daughter is quite fixated on you, for some reason. She's taken with you; she'd love to always be with you if I allowed it. So, I just want to appreciate that a little."

I barely turned my head.

"I do appreciate it, Sir."

I continued to walk up the stairs, but he wouldn't let me go.

"Well, we never see you come to the house. _I_ never see you come up."

This time, I turned fully around to face him.

"I want to make sure I'm clear with you, Mr. Yuuki. I don't ever come around to the house or if I do, I don't stick around for that long, because I know that you hate me."

He looked genuinely surprised by what I said.

"I don't hate you, Kirigaya. I just expect a lot, being that you're the boy who's dating my daughter."

"That's crap. You and I both know that you hate my guts."

This time, Mr. Yuuki said nothing. I gave him an angered look.

"You know, I've always wondered about something, Mr. Yuuki. I really like Asuna, but is dating her really worth it when I have to deal with trying to get along with you? Or deal with you constantly giving me the cold shoulder?"

He still said nothing. And so, with that, I turned back around and marched up the stairs without another word.

 _Present Day_

Had I come off as a jerk that day? Well, yeah. But for the most part, I was being truthful. I really didn't see how Mr. Yuuki's attitude towards me made it worth dating Asuna. But at the end of the day, there was no way that I wanted to break up with her, as Mr. Yuuki suggested. And now, she was missing, hadn't been seen for a week and a half?

I was crazy about Asuna; she meant everything to me. Part of me was sure that I couldn't live without her. I let out a sigh as I walked through the streets of the city. I pulled my coat further over my shoulders, slightly chilled by the winter weather. I was walking by a booth where a guy was selling newspapers, when one of the headlines caught my eye.

I veered off from my path and stepped up to the booth. I picked up the paper that had drawn me to it, so I could get a better look at it. The headline shocked me:

" _After A Month, Former SAO Survivors Continue To Disappear Without A Trace"._

For some reason, that headline hit me like a bullet.

 _SAO survivors have been disappearing?_

I began to look all around me, slightly beginning to fear for my own safety. And that's when it finally hit me.

 _If Asuna has disappeared, then this string of disappearances has to be involved! What if she had been kidnapped or something?_

Just as I was looking around, the guy who ran the booth spoke.

"Hey, are you going to buy that or what?"

I looked over at the guy, who had an expectant look on his face.

 _This guy probably has no idea that I'm one of the SAO survivors,_ I thought. _Well, it would be kind of low of me to pick up the paper, read the headline and skim through it, just for me not to buy it._

Well, I did decide to bring my wallet just in case I needed to get something to eat or buy something on the way back.

 _Oh, well._

I put the paper back where I had got it and reached to take out my wallet.

"Here you go." I replied as I handed the guy the required money for the paper.

"Thank you, have a wonderful day." He said as he smiled.

"You do the same." I replied in return.

I slipped my wallet back into my pocket, grabbed the paper and I began my walk home.

 _Forty Five Minutes Later_

 _Kazuto's House_

I finally got home and once I arrived in my yard, I saw that the mail had already come, which was a bit odd, as it was still considerably early. Nevertheless, I approached the mailbox and opened it. There was a single envelope inside and when I pulled it out, I saw my full name and address neatly written on it, but with no return address.

I found it strange, but I held the newspaper under one arm and began to open it as I walked to the door. I pulled the contents inside the envelope out just as I opened the door. Well, to be fair, it wasn't right to say "contents", as there was one photograph inside the envelope and nothing else. And the photo shocked me; it shocked me so much, that I dropped everything that was in my hands except for it.

"Is that you, big brother?" Sugu called from the living room.

I was too shocked to speak. When I didn't answer, I heard footsteps coming from the living room. Eventually, she appeared in the doorway and once she saw the pale look on my face, a worried expression formed on her face.

"Kazuto?"

When I still didn't answer, she came over to look at the photo in my hand. Once she saw it, she took it out of my hands without asking. After a few seconds of looking at it, she spoke again.

"Kazuto, what is this?"

"It's us. It's me and my friends on the final day of SAO."

"If it really is, then how can it exist?"

"It shouldn't exist." I replied as I took it back from her. "There were few pictures ever taken in SAO and none of them ever made it back to the real world."

The picture was of Agil, Klein, me and Asuna on the final day of SAO, while we were watching that sunset that Kayaba had stressed, we should see. Asuna was resting her head on my shoulder just like I remembered and like the rest of us, Agil and Klein were smiling as they stood on either side of us. It was a great picture, don't get me wrong. But it shouldn't have existed and the fact that it did exist slightly unnerved me.

The photo had obviously been taken with a special recording crystal. But, how did it make the jump from SAO to real life? I don't think that just anyone could have ripped it from the game and made it exist in the real life. I think the only people who could do that would have to have the game's data in order to do so. And Argus, I think it was, the company in charge of the data, had to have the resources necessary.

Either that or someone had the connections to "print" off the picture and mail it to me, but why? The idea that someone would know who I am and know my address to mail it to me just seemed a little odd.

"It's actually a pretty view." Sugu commented.

"It was supposed to be the final stage of SAO." I replied. "In Akihiko Kayaba's mind, my friends and I had made it through so much to earn spending those final moments together."

"That was nice of him."

"I would thank him if I could."

Sugu took a closer look at the picture.

"Is that really what Asuna's KoB uniform looked like? I thought I did well from what you described to me!"

"No, you did." I reassured her. "You did great."

"So, where did it come from?"

I shrugged.

"I don't know. It was in the mailbox when I got home today."

As an uncomfortable silence began to set in, I decided to go up to my room. I began to pick up the things that I had dropped upon walking into the house, before I began to head up the stairs.

"Hey, were you able to talk to Asuna?" Sugu asked as I walked.

Just the mention of Asuna made it feel as though my heart had come to a stop. It took all of the will power that I had to keep myself from crying.

"No, she wasn't home." I said at last.

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry. Can I get you anything?"

I turned to look at her with a sad smile on my face.

"No, thanks."

She just looked back up at me, before I finally turned back around and walked the rest of the way up the stairs. Once I got to my room, I walked in and closed the door behind me. I let out a sigh as I did nothing but stand there. I finally summoned the strength to walk across the room to my desk, where I put my wallet, keys and the paper down.

I walked over to the shelf that I had, where my NerveGear rested, along with my personal copy of the manga and a framed photo. The photo was taken just outside of the Dicey Café. All of us were in it, except for me, as I was the one who took the picture. Lisbeth, Sachi and Asuna were in the front row. While Asuna and Lisbeth were just smiling, Sachi was smiling as well, but as she flashed a peace sign at me. Silica was blushing bright red, as she recovered from Klein picking her up and putting her on his shoulders.

He was also giving me a smile that said, "yep, I just did that!". Even Agil got into the picture at the last second. He was peeking out from the door on the right side of the picture, with a smile on that scoundrel face of his. Those were good times. I let out a sigh as I placed the photo that I got in the mail on the shelf.

I would frame it eventually, but not right now. I walked over to my bed and sat down on it. And from there, I just sat there for what seemed like hours.

 _Later That Night_

Hours later, night had fallen. I hadn't even realized how much time had passed since I had been sitting there for so long. Eventually a knock at my door came.

"Come on in." I said out loud.

My door opened and Sugu walked in, sporting a towel around her hair and wearing matching red pajama pants and a button-up shirt.

"You didn't come down for dinner when I called you." She said as she continued drying her hair. "Anyway, the bath is ready for you."

When I didn't answer, she spoke once more.

"Kazuto?"

"Sorry." I finally responded. "I want to be left alone."

"Didn't you hear me? I told you that..."

I looked up at her so she could see my glum face. There were also somewhat dry trails of tears going down my cheeks. She stared back at me, now with a concerned look on her face.

"Kazuto?"

She reached out to touch me and once she did, she quickly drew her hand back.

"Kazuto, you're shivering! Why don't you turn up the heat?"

As Sugu turned on the heater, I said nothing and when I did, she took my hands, despite how cold I was.

"What is it? What's wrong?!"

"It's nothing." I let out a dry and emotionless response.

"You're lying! It can't be nothing if you're staying in your room in freezing cold temperatures!"

I said nothing once again.

"You're so cold." She said as she rubbed my hand. "I could run you a hot bath if you want?"

I still said nothing as I looked away from her. That's when she cracked a little bit.

"Kazuto, I know something is wrong! Please, just tell me!"

I finally summoned the courage to speak.

"It's Asuna."

Sugu gasped with surprise.

"What about her?"

I grit my teeth, trying to prevent myself from crying again.

"She's disappeared!"

She gasped with shock and I looked up to see a look of surprise in her eyes.

"I thought you told me that she wasn't home?"

I shook my head.

"I lied. I... I didn't want to talk about it."

Sugu didn't answer for a few seconds.

"By sitting up here by yourself, all you've done is surround yourself with negative emotions!"

I still didn't say anything.

"How do you know that she's disappeared?"

I pointed without a word to the newspaper that laid on my desk. Sugu turned and walked over to my desk. I heard her pick up the paper as she gasped.

"Former SAO survivors are disappearing?!" she asked.

I nodded without saying a word.

"Kazuto?" she asked as she turned back to me.

"Yes."

"Yes, what?"

I sighed.

"Yes, former SAO survivors have been disappearing for the last month."

"And you think that this is why you haven't been hearing from her? You think that she's disappeared, too?"

I nodded, as I began to cry again.

"I... I don't think I'll ever see her again!"

Suddenly, Sugu hugged me to her chest. I was enveloped by warmth as she gently rubbed my back.

"Everything's going to be okay, Kazuto." She whispered to me.

"No. She's gone, Sugu."

My voice was muffled due to the fact that she was hugging me to her chest. She suddenly brought me away from the hug and looked into my eyes.

"Then you need to do what you can to find her!" she said. "You can't just give up!"

I stared up at her as she stared at me.

"Maybe you're right." I said at last.

 _The Next Morning_

 _Nine Days Remaining_

When I woke up the next morning, my covers were a mess. I sat up as I let out a yawn, slightly feeling refreshed. I looked to my right, to see my breakfast on a plate, sitting on my nightstand with a note. I brought my legs around to the edge of the bed and rested my feet on the carpet, as I reached for the note and began to read:

 _I fell asleep with you for a while and when I woke up, I didn't want to wake you, so I went to go sleep in my bed. You weren't up when I made breakfast, so I just brought your plate up to you. I had to leave the house for a while, so I'll see you after a while._

 _\- Sugu_

I yawned as I put the note down on the nightstand. I picked up the plate and began to eat breakfast.

 _Five Minutes Later_

I was fight minutes into eating my breakfast once I got the call. My caller ID told me that it was Klein calling. I let out a sigh as I reached for it and brought it to my ear.

"Yo, Klein. I have to say; this is a bad time." I said after answering, my mouth partially full. "I'm in the middle of eating breakfast. Do you think you could call me back?"

There was no answer on the other end, only the sound of heavy breathing, almost panting.

"Klein? Will you answer me and stop being creepy?"

"Yeah." He said after I heard him take another breath. "Hey, Kiri-Dude. You won't believe what happened to me last night!"

I swallowed the bite of food in my mouth.

"Can it wait?"

"No, I have to tell you now! Kiri-Dude, I was mugged last night!"

It nearly felt like the lump of food I had just swallowed was coming back up.

"What?!" I asked as I sat up straighter.

As I hastily sat up, the plate of food fell onto the floor. I cursed myself as I dropped my fork and got off of my bed to pick up my mess.

"I know." He said from his end.

"No, no, no. Klein, wait." I said as I began picking up bits of food from the floor and putting them back on the plate. "What do you mean you were mugged?"

"I was walking home from work last night, when I was confronted by three or four men, all dressed in black. They tried to beat me up, but I was able to fend them off, however, they still cut me."

"Did they rob you? Do you have your wallet? Were your keys or anything like that stolen?"

"No. I was only cut. Once I had gotten away from them, they gave up."

Just then, for a split second, the newspaper from yesterday popped into my head.

 _I don't think that they were trying to mug you..._

"Look man, I know it's early, but is it alright if I come over? I'd like to explain this a bit more in person."

"Yeah, that's fine. In fact, I have something that I'd like to talk to you about and I need to do it in person."

"Okay. Well, I'll see you soon!"

"Yep." I said, before we hung up.

I picked up my plate and fork, leaving the room. I walked down the stairs just as Sugu was walking through the door.

"Hey, where did you go?" I asked.

"I went to the bookstore." She said. "Have you seen the listings? The manga is selling like hotcakes!"

"I know." I said as I walked towards the kitchen. "It's insane that something like that can sell that fast."

I turned on the faucet and began to wash the food down the garbage disposal.

"Were you not hungry?"

"No, I ate maybe half of it and then dumped it on the floor."

Sugu chuckled.

"Are you really that clumsy?"

"No, it was out of surprise."

I placed the plate on the kitchen counter. I turned around to face her.

"Klein called while I was eating. He said that he was mugged last night."

Sugu's eyes went wide with surprise.

"Really?!" she asked.

I nodded.

"What happened?!"

"Well, he said that he was almost mugged. He told me that the goons who tried to beat him up didn't steal anything from him, but they did cut him. In my opinion, I don't think he was getting mugged."

"Why is that?"

"Well, because Klein is an SAO survivor. Remember that newspaper I brought home yesterday? I think if he hadn't of gotten away, then he would be the next survivor to disappear. And besides, Klein is an average ordinary guy. What would simple thugs want with him?"

Sugu put her hand on her chin.

"You have a point. Well, what are you going to do?"

"Klein told me that he wanted to come over to explain this in person. And I wanted to tell him about the disappearances. So, he'll be here soon."

"So, we just wait, then?"

"We just wait."

 _Sometime Later_

While I was waiting for Klein to arrive, I went back up to my room to get the newspaper. Now, I waited in the living room with Sugu for him to arrive. Just then, there was a pounding knock at the door.

"Well, I guess that's him." I said as I stood up.

I left the living room and walked to the door. I opened the front door and saw Klein standing outside, wearing his work clothes, that hideous bandanna and holding a napkin to his cheek.

"Hey, Kiri-Dude!" he greeted me.

"Hey. What's with the napkin?"

"Oh, my cheek is still slightly bleeding." He said as he pulled the napkin back and small amount of blood trickled from the cut in his cheek. "See?"

I looked at the cut on his cheek.

"That cut looks deep. It could use stitches." I said as I moved out of the way. "Come on in."

Klein walked into the house and I shut the door behind him. I walked towards the kitchen, with him following behind me.

"Sugu, can you come here, please?" I called out.

Klein and I entered the kitchen and a few seconds later, Sugu entered the room as well.

"What's up, big bro?"

"Take a look at his cheek."

Klein relunctantly pulled the napkin away so Sugu could get a good look at the cut.

"What do you think? Does it need stitches?"

Sugu turned to face me.

"It certainly wouldn't hurt. I'll go get the first aid kit. You guys stay here."

"Aye-aye, Ma'am!" Klein exclaimed as he snapped at attention and saluted Sugu.

I rolled my eyes at his words. A minute or so later, Sugu returned with the kit and turned on the lights in the kitchen.

"Sit down." She commanded him.

Klein sat down in one of the chairs at the kitchen table. Sugu followed him, sat the kit down on the table and opened it, ready to get to work. A minute or so into Sugu stitching his wound, Klein let out a pained grunt.

"If you hadn't of moved, that wouldn't have happened!" Sugu tsked.

"Sorry! This has never happened to me before!"

I chuckled at the banter between Klein and Sugu.

"I'm sure that's what you say to all the girls, Klein."

"Kiri-Dude, I think your sister's flirting with me!"

I rolled my eyes.

"No, pervert, it's just you."

"In your dreams." Sugu chimed in.

After another minute or so, Sugu closed up the kit.

"There! Good as new!"

Klein rubbed his cheek, with the small cut now being stitched shut.

"Wow. Thanks, Sugu! I guess you're not worthless after all!"

Sugu was silent for a couple seconds.

"I can't decide whether I should take that as a compliment or be offended by that."

"Oh, I'll take the compliment! The compliment's a good deal!"

She didn't say anything as she picked up the first aid kit and walked away past me.

"I'll leave you two to talk."

Once she was gone, I looked at Klein as he stood up from the table.

"So, you want to tell me again exactly what happened?"

He shrugged.

"I don't know, dude. I was walking home from work, minding my own business and then I was ambushed by three men dressed in all black. I think they were going to rob me and when I didn't cooperate with them, I guess you'd say, they tried to kill me. I got away but not before they cut me."

"I don't think they wanted to rob you, Klein."

He gave me a confused look.

"What do you mean?"

I reached to my back pocket and grabbed the newspaper, which I had rolled up.

"What do you think of this?"

He took the paper from it and began reading it. After a few seconds, he looked back at me with surprise.

"Kirito, is this for real? Former SAO survivors have been disappearing for the last month?"

I nodded.

"And that's not all." I said.

He looked at me with a questioning glance.

"I went to go see Asuna yesterday, since I haven't heard from her in over a week. And her father told me that she's disappeared. He hasn't seen her for almost two weeks."

Klein's eyes widened with surprise.

"I think that the SAO disappearances has something to do with Asuna's disappearance. I also think you came close to being abducted."

"Well, it would make sense. I guess I should consider myself lucky. Jeez, how did I not hear about this?"

"Don't feel too bad. I just found out myself yesterday."

Just then, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I let out a sigh as I slipped my hand into my pocket and pulled my phone out. I looked at it and saw the email notification on my screen.

"Agil just sent me an email..." I let out in a confused tone.

"You receive emails on your phone?"

"Of course, I do. In this day and age, who doesn't?"

I opened up the email as I went silent and I read it to myself.

 _I found something that you might want to see. Could you come by the café at some point today?_

 _\- Agil_

"He says that he found something I may want to see. He wants me to go by the café sometime today." I said as I looked back up at Klein.

"Do you want to go now?"

"What about you? Don't you have work today?"

He shook his head.

"I called in sick after what happened last night. So, what about it? Do you want to go now and get it over with?"

I continued looking at him, but eventually I nodded.

"I'll need to get dressed first. Is that okay with you?"

"Take your time. We're not in a rush."

"Okay. I'll be right back. I won't take very long."

I walked past him and out of the kitchen.

 _One Hour Later_

 _The Dicey Café_

After I got dressed in jeans, a long sleeved shirt and a black jacket, Klein and I headed out. Klein opened the door for me, and I walked in. The place was dead. It was only us three.

"So, what did you want to show me?" I greeted Agil as I walked up to the counter.

"I found something that might interest you." He said as he looked up to see Klein walking in behind me. "Klein, my man!"

They high fived each other as Klein walked up to the bar with me.

"So, can I get you guys anything to drink?" Agil asked.

Klein was about to speak, but I put my hand up, stopping him.

"Agil, I've had a rough last couple of days. We're not here to mingle. Just tell us what you need to tell us."

He nodded and moved to where his laptop sat on the counter. He slid it over to where we were, as Klein and I sat at the bar.

"The Wi-Fi here is nothing special, so it may take a bit for me to pull it up." He said as he opened up the laptop. "Sit tight, guys."

"No rush." I replied. "We have time."

Agil messed with his laptop for a few minutes, before he finally looked up at me.

"Okay. Tell me, does this look like anyone you know?"

He turned the laptop to face me and I squinted at the screen. I gasped once I saw it. The picture that Agil showed me was of someone trapped in some sort of cage. The person in the picture was a girl and she was wearing a white dress of some kind. She also had on something on her head that obscured her hair a bit, but I could tell that she had orangish-brownish chestnut colored hair, which was braided near the back of her head. And I knew who the girl was, there was no doubting it. The girl in the picture was Asuna!

"Is that who I think it is?!" Klein exclaimed, breaking the silence.

All I did was sigh, before I spoke myself.

"You've got to be kidding me."

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for Chapter Eighteen, part one of Fairy Dance! I hope you all enjoyed!

* If you have any questions about anything that I changed in this arc or anything original I decided to do, please feel free to PM me or post a review. I thought I'd say that this chapter was originally going to be split into two parts, but I changed my mind when I realized you guys might want a longer chapter for the beginning of the next arc.

* One question before I go: I feel like every reader knows the story of Fairy Dance. That being said, when in the Anime you find out that Sugu is Leafa, do you want me to adapt scenes like that, where it's from her point of view? Or would you want me to leave them out? Go ahead and let me know!

* Apart from that, I don't think I have anything else to say. That being said, I'm going to go. So, have a fantastic day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 17): This version was WAY much better than the "Extra Edition" (the recap of the Aincrad arc) and the other booklet (seen in the "Ordinal Scale" movie) that had the list of members of the Assault Team/Clearers that also mentioned a bit about some of the adventures in Aincrad!_

 _And much better with the amount of time that passed after the SAO incident; a couple of months (canon) versus one year (this story). Great job on your version of the Aincrad arc! Also, I DEFINITELY want you to adapt the Fairy Dance arc, and the rest of the SAO arcs (if possible)!_

Thanks, Naruto. I'm glad that you think this was better than the Extra Edition. And I'm also glad that you think the amount of time that passed was better here. Two months really is an absurd amount of time to be fully rehabilitated from a two-year-long coma. Thanks for your kind words, I'm really glad that you think I did a good job with Aincrad.

As for Fairy Dance, it's well on its way. I have an idea for The Fatal Bullet arc (which Fatal Bullet, as well as Mother's Rosario will be their own story, as I don't want to overcrowd this one with chapters), but I'm not sure about Mother's Rosario. I also have yet to see Ordinal Scale and Alicization, so if I decide to adapt those two, it really depends on how I like them. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _SwordY05hi (Chapter 17): Please do the Fairy Dance arc. I am interest to see what you can do with it. Especial with Sachi alive. How does that make things different going forward. That is what I want to see the most along with everything else you will do in this story._

Thanks, Yoshi. I'm glad you like that Sachi is alive and you want to know how that will make things different. I hope you guys end up enjoying this arc as much as you enjoyed the last one. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Agil explains the backstory of the picture to Kazuto and Klein, revealing that the picture was taken inside the game ALfheim Online, a recently released game that is in its open beta. After they leave, Kazuto and Klein go to visit Sachi, where they learn more about the disappearances. Later that night, Kazuto dives into ALO to investigate for himself. Upon logging into the game, Kirito and Klein run into an old friend.


	19. Chapter 19: Land of the Fairies

Chapter 19: Land of the Fairies

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Nineteen!

* So, in this chapter, Kazuto will make his leap back into the VRMMORPG genre, as you would expect. I'm not sure what else there is to say. So, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _December 7_ _th_ _, 2025 – The Dicey Café_

 _Nine Days Remaining_

"Kirito, wait!" Klein exclaimed as I ran out of the café, him following closely behind me. "What are you doing?!"

I turned around to face him.

"Don't you get it, Klein?! Asuna is trapped! I have to save her!"

"Hold on, let's not be hasty. Let's not jump to conclusions. We don't even know if that was Asuna!"

"Oh, I get it! If it concerns me, it's no big deal! But when it comes to you and Sachi, there goes the neighborhood!"

He gave me a confused look.

"What? No! That's not it at all! We should go back inside and..."

"Why? If Asuna is really in trouble, then she needs my help! And I won't let you stop me!"

"I'm not going to stop you! In fact, I would help you! But we don't know if that was really Asuna we saw. And on top of that, we don't even know where the picture came from! It could be photoshopped for all we know!"

I let out an irritated sigh.

"Fine. I'll give Agil five minutes to explain. Once those five minutes are up, I'm out."

"No, you'll let him tell the whole story. You owe it to him after coming out here."

I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever."

I walked back to the door to the café and opened it, walking back inside.

"Alright, Agil. What's the story behind that picture? Was that really Asuna? If you tell me that _was_ Asuna, then..."

I felt Klein put his hands on my shoulders.

"Kiri-Dude let's calm down a little bit. Deep breathe. In through the nose, out through the mouth. In through the nose, out through the..."

"Hands off, man!" I exclaimed, pushing his hands off of my shoulders as Agil chuckled.

I sat back down at the bar, as did Klein. I looked at Agil.

"So?"

"Truth is, I don't know if is actually her. But the picture itself is going to require some explaining."

"We have time."

Agil went over to the corner of the bar and began rummaging through a bag or something. He came back with something in his hand.

"Do you know what this is?"

He slid the object across the countertop to me. Once it came to a stop and I saw what it was, my heart sank. It was the case for a VRMMORPG game, namely that one called "ALfheim Online". I lightly pushed it away from me.

"Come on, Agil. You know that I'm done with the genre!"

"I know you are! But you do know what that is, don't you?"

"Of course, I do! It's that new game, ALfheim Online! The main director used the leftover assets from SAO to make the game."

"You mean Sugou Nobuyuki?" Klein asked.

"Yes, _him_." I hissed through gritted teeth.

"He really doesn't like that name." Agil said.

"Yeah, no shit!"

I put up my hands out of frustration.

"Will everyone stop talking at me at once and get to the main point? What has ALfheim Online got to do with this?"

"That's where the picture came from." Agil explained. "So, ALO, that's the acronym for ALfheim Online, was developed for the AmuSphere, the NerveGear's successor."

"And it's an MMO? Like SAO?" Klein asked.

"If it matters, it means, "Land of the Fairies". At least, that's what I've heard."

"Well, isn't that nice? Land of the Fairies? Roll credits!"

I rolled my eyes at Klein's attempt at humoring us.

"Okay, so the picture was taken in ALfheim Online. Is that right?"

Agil nodded.

"But fairies, huh? That seems like a far cry from what SAO was."

"Land of the Fairies." Klein repeated what Agil had said.

"Sounds like a cute game, I guess. Can we get to the specifics?"

"So, I think I should mention that PKing is allowed. It also has a hardcore skill system."

"What do you mean hardcore?"

"The game isn't level based, it's skill based. You have to use your skills over and over to improve them."

"Who would want to play a game like that?" Klein interjected.

"Apparently a lot of people find it appealing. Anyway, back to it. Combat depends on your real life physical abilities."

I looked back down at the game's case,

"That _is_ hardcore." I admitted.

"There's also no sword skills. Other than that, it's like SAO with magic."

"An RPG with magic, huh? That's pretty bold, man."

I chuckled at Klein's callback to the day we first met.

"From what I hear, people are going nuts over it. In the game, you supposedly feel like you're flying."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know how fairies have wings?"

"Of course."

"Well, the game's got this flight engine thing. And once you figure it out, you can fly."

"Hold up." Klein interjected. "You mean fly, as in literally? Like, you can fly like a bird?"

Agil nodded.

"A bird, bee, wasp or whatever. If it has wings, then yeah. You can fly like that."

"How does the player control it?" I asked.

"I have no idea, man. I do hear that it's a pain to get used to, though."

"I bet."

"Maybe you're supposed to use the muscles in your back?" Klein asked.

I turned to look at him.

"I don't know, dude. I mean, how would you control something that you don't even have?"

Agil cleared his throat, causing us both to look back at him.

"Right, getting back to the picture. Getting back to _Asuna_. Is it really her?"

He moved back to the laptop and brought it back over, so I could see the picture again.

"Does she look familiar to you?" he asked.

"Well, of course she does! To me, that's Asuna!"

"Uh-huh. I knew you'd say that."

I felt my face heat up as my level of annoyance rose.

"If you knew what I was going to say, then what was the point of..."

Klein cleared his throat, which caused me to stop talking. I let out a sigh and shot an apologetic look at Agil.

"I'm sorry. Look, my last couple days haven't been easy ones. So, can you please just cut the crap and tell me where that picture was taken? And what does it have to do with this game?"

"Hey, no worries, man. I understand how you feel. But as for where the picture was taken, well, ALfheim Online."

When he said that, it felt like my breathe hitched in my throat. The fact that Agil was mentioning ALfheim Online, the reason was clear now.

 _I think what he's trying to say is that the picture was taken inside of ALfheim Online!_

"Agil, are you saying what..."

He nodded before I could finish my sentence.

"Yep. That was taken inside the game."

I let out a light gasp, as Klein did the same. He gently took the case out of my hands and flipped it over. On the back of the case, there was a semi-detailed map of the game's realm, I'm guessing?

"Right in the middle, you have the World Tree, that's where the picture was taken. At the top of the World Tree, there's this legendary castle. Players are divided up into nine races. Each one of those races are trying to be the first to get to the castle."

"So, what? The point of the game is to clear the top of the World Tree and gain access to the castle? Wow, I can see where they got their inspiration."

"Yeah, minus points on originality." Klein chimed in.

"I know, right?" I said as I turned to look at him.

"Pay attention." Agil replied.

I turned back to him.

"Okay, so if the point is to get to the top of this "World Tree" and if you can fly in this game, then why don't they just fly up to it?"

He shook his head.

"It's not that simple. And even if it was, it's already been attempted. The game has a limit to how long you can stay airborne. So, here's what happened. These five players stacked up, bigger players on the bottom. They tried launching themselves like a rocket!"

"Hmm. Good idea, I guess. So, did they make it?"

Agil chuckled.

"Not even close. They didn't even make it past the lowest branch."

"Jeez." Klein replied. "How big is this tree?"

"Bigger than any tree you've likely ever seen. At least according to rumors, anyway. However, the did manage to snag a couple snapshots, though. When they checked out the pics, they saw something weird."

"Let me guess." I replied. "That girl trapped in that cage contraption?"

Agil nodded once more.

"They thought they saw a birdcage or something like that in one of the shots. After they zoomed in, they saw her."

He gently tapped on the screen of his laptop, which featured the picture he was describing.

"Okay, let's slow down a little. Let's say that this really _is_ Asuna. What's she doing there?"

No one offered an answer. I sighed in response.

"Thanks, guys. Good talk."

Klein eventually put his hand on his chin.

"Maybe we should investigate for ourselves?" he finally asked. "You know, enter the game and find out what we can?"

"It's not a bad idea." Agil said. "Here, you can borrow my copy of ALO."

"Thanks. But I don't know if I can spare the money for the AmuSphere and the rest of the hardware needed to play it."

"There's no need. You still have your old NerveGear, don't you?"

"Well, yeah. Why?"

"It's compatible with it. The AmuSphere is just a NerveGear, but with better security."

My face went dark at the mention of the NerveGear and security.

"Agil, I never wanted to put that thing on again."

"I understand. But if Asuna really is in ALO somewhere, you're going to have to."

That made something click in my mind. What had Sugu said to me last night?

 _You need to do what you can to find her! You can't just give up!_

I let out a sigh.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right."

"Well, how about it, Kiri-Dude?" Klein asked. "Are you willing to dive back in? Just like old times?"

I gave a reluctant nod, before I turned to look at him with a smirk on my face.

"A game where it's okay to die shouldn't be that big a deal!"

 _Sometime Later_

Eventually, Klein and I left The Dicey Café, with my new plan to enter ALfheim Online fresh in my mind.

"So, what will you do while I investigate ALO?" I asked him as we walked down the sidewalk.

"Are you kidding me, Kiri-Dude? I'm coming with you!"

I turned to look at him with surprise.

"But, don't you have work?"

He shrugged.

"Eh, I'll take the rest of the week off."

"You don't have to do that."

"Yeah, but I want to. Oh, crap! I forgot that you're the only one who got to keep your NerveGear, thanks to your negotiations with that guy from the Task Force! I don't have an AmuSphere!"

"Klein, don't worry about it."

"Well, I can use some of the money in my rainy day fund. I was saving up for a nicer pad, but oh, well!"

"Klein, seriously!"

"What?"

"You don't have to do this! I can handle this!"

"Yeah, I know you can. But I want to help you! I want to pay you back for showing me the ropes on our first day of SAO!"

"Klein, you don't have to pay me back! And even if you did, you already bought me dinner like you said you would!"

"Well, yeah, but buying you dinner seems like child's play compared to helping you in ALO!"

"Klein, you don't have to do this."

"But I want to help!"

"No matter how many times I say that you don't have to, you'll keep insisting, won't you?"

"Pretty much."

I finally sighed.

"Okay, you win. If you really want to help, fine. Take your time to buy an AmuSphere and once you're ready tonight, call me. Or I can call you. Whichever works for me."

"I'll call tonight if I don't hear from you before."

"Well, alright then."

"Hey, while we're talking, do you want to see if Sachi wants to help us, too?"

I shrugged, before I took out my phone.

"Couldn't hurt."

I opened up my contacts and scrolled down until I found Sachi's name and contact info. Once we were all freed from SAO, one of the first things we made sure to do was exchange each other's contact information. I dialed Sachi's number and put the phone to my ear. After several rings, it went to voicemail. I let out a frustrated sigh.

"No answer." I said, as I slipped my phone back into my pocket.

"Hmm. Have you talked to her lately?" he asked as we began walking again.

I nodded.

"Yeah, she knows that Asuna hadn't been talking to me, since she had disappeared. She's offered me a few words and told me that I should keep my distance. If Asuna really was mad at me, she'd get back to me when she felt like it."

"Well, sure, that makes sense. But have you thought about the fact she didn't answer her phone? She _always_ answers when it's you calling."

"Well, so what if she doesn't answer her phone? Maybe she's in the middle of something! She doesn't have to..."

My eyes widened once I realized what Klein was trying to ask me. My entire body froze as the thought ran through my head.

 _What if Sachi had disappeared, too?_

"Shit." I cursed, which was rare for me and took off running down the sidewalk.

"Kirito, where are you going?!" Klein exclaimed.

I didn't answer as I kept running, forcing him to follow me.

 _Sometime Later_

 _Sachi's House_

I pretty much ran all the way to Sachi's house, which was a good ten minutes or so away from where we were at. Klein followed me just like I thought he would and once I stopped out front of her house, he came to a stop as well.

"What was the point of making me run like that?" he asked.

I turned to look at him.

"I'm just worried. If she didn't answer her phone, then what if she's disappeared?"

Klein nodded.

"Yeah, that's the point I was trying to make to you."

I nodded.

"I know. I just have to make sure that she's okay."

I walked up to her front door and knocked several times. Several seconds past, almost a minute, actually. Just when I thought I wouldn't get an answer; the door began to slowly open. And much to my relief, Sachi was standing on the other side of it. Once she saw that it was me, she broke out in a relieved smile.

"Come in, come in!" she urged us. "Quickly!"

Klein and I were confused but nonetheless, we both walked into Sachi's house and she quickly shut the door behind us. She turned to face us with an anxious look on her face.

"Is it just you two? Were you followed?"

Klein and I exchanged confused looks. I looked back at Sachi and nodded.

"Yeah. And no, I don't think we were followed."

Sachi then surprised me by throwing her arms around me and hugging me, as she ran her nose along my neck.

"Oh, thank God! I've been so worried!"

"Um, okay. Easy, Sachi."

I began rubbing her back in an attempt to comfort her.

"You want to tell us what happened?"

Sachi eventually pulled away from the hug and looked at me, nodding as she did.

"We'll talk in the living room."

Klein and I followed her into the living room, where Klein and I sat on the couch, while Sachi sat on the loveseat.

"So, what happened?" I asked her.

Sachi looked down at the floor with an uncomfortable gaze in her eyes, before she finally spoke.

"I think I was almost kidnapped, Kirito."

My eyes widened with surprise.

"What do you mean? When?"

"I was walking home from the bookstore a few days ago, when a group of three men attacked me."

She was being so calm about it; I knew that she was using all of her will power to keep from freaking out.

"You were attacked?" Klein asked. "How did you get away?"

She continued to be silent for a few seconds, before she shook her head.

"I don't know. I shouldn't have been able to get away. Before they could put me to sleep or whatever, I bit down on the leader's hand as hard as I could, and once he let me go, I ran as fast as my legs would allow me to go."

"Did they go looking for you?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Once I got away, I hid in an alley. When I heard them approaching, I hid in a dumpster. And when they paced through the alley, I heard one of the men say something."

"What did he say?"

She looked up at me at last.

"He said that I was the first SAO survivor that they failed to restrain. And because of it, Oberon would have their heads for it."

At the mention of that name, I looked over at Klein, who just shrugged in response.

"Does that name mean anything to you guys?"

I looked back at her and shook my head.

"No." Klein replied.

"Same here. I don't know an "Oberon". The name doesn't ring any bells." I chimed in.

She let out a sigh.

"Well, either way, something weird is going on, Kirito. And you have to get to the bottom of it!"

I nodded.

"You're right. Something weird _is_ going on. I don't know what I can do, though."

Klein nudged me and I turned to look at him.

"Should we tell her about our quest?" he asked.

"Well, it's not much of a quest. I'd call it an investigation."

"Yeah, but calling it a quest sounds more epic."

I rolled my eyes.

"What are you guys doing?"

I turned back to look at Sachi.

"So, you know how you gave me advice when Asuna stopped responding to my texts?"

She nodded.

"Well, yesterday I found out why. I talked with her father and he told me that she's disappeared without a trace. No one's seen her for a week. Maybe a week and a half."

Sachi gasped.

"Please tell me you're kidding!"

I sighed and looked down.

"I wish I was. Asuna really has disappeared."

"Oh my God. Kirito, I'm so sorry."

I looked up at her and smiled.

"It's alright, Sachi. Besides, Klein and I have a plan."

"Before you tell her, shouldn't you mention what happened to me? And the disappearances?"

"Oh, yeah. I guess I should. So, last night, Klein was walking home from work, where he was almost mugged."

Sachi's face was pale at this point as she looked at me with disbelief. Klein nodded next to me.

"I was approached by a few men dressed all in black." He said. "They tried to attack me, but I fought them off, where they eventually gave up. Not before they cut me, though."

I nodded as well.

"Klein thought that they were trying to mug him. Well, I think differently. I picked up a newspaper yesterday that explained former SAO survivors have been disappearing for the last month. I think Klein was close to becoming the next survivor to disappear. And I think what you went through had something to do with these disappearances."

Sachi just stared at me.

"Wow." She finally said.

"Am I missing anything, Klein?" I asked as I turned to look at him.

"No. I think you got the gist of it."

"So, what's the plan that you guys have?" Sachi asked.

I looked back at Sachi as I pulled out the case for ALfheim Online. I set it down on the coffee table.

"Do you know what this is, Sachi?" I asked.

"That new VRMMO?" she asked. "ALfheim Online?"

I nodded.

"Yeah. It's all about fairies and stuff."

She looked at me skeptically.

"Why do you have it?" she asked at last.

"Agil called us over to The Dicey Café. When we got there, he gave us some information about ALO, that's the acronym for the game."

She nodded.

"I could have picked up on that."

"Anyways, Agil eventually showed us a picture. The picture was of a girl who looked distinctively like Asuna. We think that she may be held captive in ALO."

"And we're diving into the game to investigate it ourselves." Klein chimed in.

I nodded.

"So, can we count on you to come along and help us?" I asked.

Sachi looked down at the floor without answering. Eventually it began to look as though she may cry.

"Sachi?" I asked with worry.

She finally looked back up at me, but she wasn't crying.

"I'm sorry, I can't. After SAO, I can't go back to that genre. I technically died in that game, remember? Klein used the revival item to save me and if he had done it a moment later, my brain would have been fried and I wouldn't be sitting here right now. I just can't do it. I'm sorry."

I looked down. I don't know why I was disappointed; I completely understood what she was going through. After SAO, I had no intentions of ever diving back into a VRMMORPG. But, if that really was Asuna, then I had to do what I could to get her out of ALO.

"Hey, don't sweat it, Sachi. We get it." Klein spoke. "We understand. It's not a big deal, we can totally handle it just us two!"

Klein's words just now reminded me of what he had said on our first day of SAO, when I was skeptical of meeting up with him and his friends. That day could have gone a whole lot different, in fact. What if Klein hadn't persuaded me not to go off on my own? What would have happened if I decided to be a solo player? Would I have ever met Sachi and the Moonlit Black Cats? Would I even be friends with Klein today if I had gone off on my own on day one? While I was in my thoughts, Klein snapped his fingers in front of my face.

"Kiri-Dude are you there?" he asked.

I shook my head, clearing my mind of the thoughts I had.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking." I said at last.

I looked at Sachi once more before he could say anything.

"You can't count on me this time. Again, I'm sorry." She said as a sad smile came to her face. "But I wish you two the best of luck!"

"Don't sweat it, Sachi." Klein said again. "Kirito and I got this!"

 _Later That Night_

 _Kazuto's House_

Later that evening, I was in my room, just sitting on my bed and doing nothing. I had taken my NerveGear off of the shelf and had it sitting on the desk across from me, but I wasn't doing anything with it. I had been sitting on my bed for a while when my phone began to ring. I let out a sigh as I reached for it. The caller ID told me that Klein was calling and so, I answered.

"Hello?"

"Alright, Kiri-Dude. I got back home a while ago after buying the AmuSphere, as well as a copy of ALO." Klein spoke on the other end. "Everything's set up for me, so I'm good to start whenever you want to!"

"Mmm." I let out a grunt in response.

"Everything okay, Kirito?" Klein asked with a hint of concern in his voice.

I let out a sigh.

"I'm just having my doubts, Klein."

"How so?"

"Like, what if that really isn't Asuna that's trapped in ALO? What if it's just an NPC or something?"

Klein said nothing for a few seconds.

"Oh, Kirito. Don't do that."

"Don't do what?"

"Don't act all depressed! You have to give yourself hope! This plan is going to work, Kirito!"

"I know it will. Because if we fail or if it's not really Asuna who's trapped in there, I don't know what I'll do."

Klein went silent again for a few seconds.

"So, you're really into her, aren't you?" he finally asked.

"Klein, I'm honestly not sure that I could live without her."

"Then what do you say we stop wasting time and dive into the game already?"

I let out a sigh.

"You're right. But if you're going to help me investigate, how will we find each other once were in the game?"

"Okay, you had me on your friend list in SAO, right? And I had you on my friend list?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well, I never deleted my old account. And I'm assuming that you didn't either. Am I right?"

"Yeah, you are."

"So, we might still be on each other's friend list! It'll work out! We should be able to meet up no problem!"

"I guess that's a plausible thought. Alright, are you ready to start?"

"Yep, I'll see you in there, buddy!"

"Okay, I'll see you soon."

After that exchange, we hung up. I got up and left the room to check on Sugu before I dove into ALO. I walked over to the door to her bedroom and knocked. Several seconds passed and I didn't get an answer, so I didn't knock again. If she didn't answer the door, then she must have been in the middle of something important. Either homework or she was sleeping.

So, I walked back into my room and shut the door behind me. I walked over to my desk where ALO's case sat and I opened it. Once I got the game ready, I put on my old NerveGear and laid down on my bed. With that, I said the two words that I thought I'd never say again:

"Link start!"

After I bypassed the starting menus of the NerveGear, setting the language to Japanese and putting in my account information, I saw the message:

"Welcome to ALfheim Online!" it said.

I appeared in some kind of circular room, surrounded my several blank screens.

"Welcome to ALfheim Online!" an automated female voice spoke, as a pale blue holo-keyboard appeared in front of me. "Please enter your gender and the name you wish to be identified as."

I checked the "male" checkbox and typed "Kirito" into the keyboard without a second thought. Once I had done that, at least eight characters appeared from a flash of bright light.

"There are nine races of fairies to choose from." The voice continued. "Please select which race you wish to play as."

My cursor started on a slim character dressed mostly in green. He was fashioned with silver armor pieces, green hair and as well as a set of green wings.

"Hmm." I finally grunted.

As I circled through them, I came to a stop on a character who stood out to me. He was dressed all in black, had black wings and wore a cloak with the hood up, obscuring the top of his head.

"That one looks good." I told myself as I tapped on it, hoping to get more information about it.

"You have selected Spriggan. Your character's appearance will be decided at random. Do you wish to continue?"

I tapped the confirmation button and the voice continued speaking.

"You will now be teleported to your own town in Spriggan Territory. Good luck, player!"

I was then enveloped in some kind of white light and my surroundings disappeared.

 _ALfheim Online_

 _Above Spriggan Territory_

When I finally opened my eyes, I noticed that I was now in the form of my chosen avatar. Oh, and I was falling from the sky. I looked down as I fell, and my eyes filled with awe as I saw some kind of giant pyramid below me. But then, I suddenly quit falling and I heard the sound of electricity sparking.

 _Now what?_

As I looked around, my surroundings began getting consumed by some kind of blackness. Now I began to fall towards the blackness.

"What's going on?!" I exclaimed as I fell.

 _Sometime Later_

 _Ancient Forest_

"Kirito, wake up." I heard a voice break through the darkness.

I only let out a grunt in response.

"Come on, Kirito! Seriously!" the voice continued. "Wake up!"

I finally opened my eyes to see Klein sitting on the ground next to me, wearing some kind of red tunic.

"Klein?" I asked as I sat up, rubbing the back of my head as I went. "How'd you find me? Where are we?"

"I was right. Even though we haven't played ALO, you popped up on my friend list. I guess it has something to do with our accounts. Maybe since we were friends in SAO, friends from other games will pop up on the list if they begin playing ALO?"

"Well, I guess that makes sense. But how did you find me? And, where are we?"

"We're in an area called "The Ancient Forest". I tracked your position on my map. And when I found you, you were passed out."

"The Ancient Forest, huh? That's ominous."

"How long were you out?"

"I don't know. How long did it take for you to find me?"

"Well, I logged in and chase my race. After that, I noticed that you were on my friend list, which took a few minutes for me to. And then I walked all the way here, which took fifteen or twenty minutes."

I let out a sigh. I could hardly believe that I had been out for almost half an hour.

"Well, here I am. I'm back in a VRMMO." I said with another sigh.

"Where do you think we should start?"

I shrugged as I looked up at Klein, surprised to see that I was looking at the Klein I knew from real life.

"What is it, Kirito?"

"When I was choosing my race, it told me that my appearance will be chosen at random. And you look exactly like your real life self."

"Oh, you can actually pay an extra fee to change your avatar's appearance to your liking. I guess I kinda left that out."

"Yeah, you kinda did."

"You actually sort of look like the real life you, the face is a tad off, though. Oh, and the hair doesn't fit you."

"Huh?"

I got up and walked over to a small pond that sat nearby. I got on my knees and looked at my reflection in the calm water. Klein was right. I kind of looked like my real life self, save for spiky hair that I really didn't like. I let out a sigh as I fell back onto the grass.

"Hey, what race did you pick, Kirito?"

"I picked Spriggan. You?"

"I decided to play as a Salamander. Their race wears primarily red and I like red."

"And of course, you're wearing that hideous bandanna."

"Hey! I like my bandanna!"

"Whatever."

A few seconds of silence passed between us after that, but eventually, he spoke again.

"You know, you could pay to have your avatar changed, right?"

"It's not worth it. I doubt I'll be playing this game for very long."

"But we're here to investigate! That could take a while!"

"I meant after that."

"Come on, Kiri-Dude! What's wrong with ALO?"

"Nothing's wrong with it, I'm sure it's a great game. But my only interest is getting Asuna out of here. That is, if she's really trapped here."

"You really need to lighten up."

"After SAO, I never wanted to dive back into a VRMMO. And look where I am now."

"Well, you're here now and I suggest we get a move on."

"Okay." I said as I stood back up. "So, where do where is the World Tree?"

"Well, we're in the middle of a decently-sized forest with trees all around us. I think we should get out first before we start looking."

"Didn't Agil say that the game had a flight engine? Something that made it possible for your avatar to fly?"

"Yeah, he did. So, how do we fly then?"

"Good question."

More silence passed between us.

"Maybe it's something that we have to activate through the menu?"

"There's an idea."

I swiped down with my right hand, a strange, yet familiar motion. When nothing happened, I let out a light gasp and tried again. Nothing happened still. I kept doing it over and over, until Klein finally spoke.

"Oh, um, Kirito? Players use their left hands to access the menu in this game."

"Um, okay. That's interesting. And weird."

I swiped down with my left hand this time and the menu immediately opened. I looked down the list of options and absentmindedly took a breath of relief when I saw the log out button.

 _There it is, right where it should be,_ I thought.

"I'm gonna look at the list of skills that are available at the start for my race." Klein replied. "You think you should do the same?"

"Yeah. Good idea."

I opened my skill list and I was immediately surprised by what I saw. I had just started playing ALO, so I thought that my list of skills would be pretty slim right now. But that wasn't the case. There were at least eight different fields present. Now, some of them may have been Spriggan starter skills, but that didn't make any sense. Seeing as I had just started the game, there was no way that I could have this many skills to start out with.

"What the hell?" I finally muttered.

"What is it?" Klein asked.

"Come here." I said, waving him over after I made sure my window would be visible to him.

Klein walked over and gazed at my window for several seconds.

"What the hell?" he finally repeated what I had said.

"I know. That's what I said. The variety here seems to be random. There are battle skills like One-Handed Swords and Martial Arts. Then there's lifestyle skills, like Fishing."

I scanned through the skills.

 _One-Handed Sword Skills, 1000. Martial Arts, 991. Fishing, 643._

That's when it hit me. I knew these skills. I knew where they were from.

"I know where these skills are from." I whispered.

"What?" Klein asked.

I looked up at him.

"Klein, I think these are my skills from SAO."

He looked at me with surprise.

"What?"

I just nodded in response.

"Can your skills even transfer over? Is that possible?"

"I-I don't know!"

Silence passed between us again.

"Try opening your inventory." Klein said at last. "Let's see if you have anything."

I did as he recommended. And boy did I have a lot of items. But I couldn't tell what any of them were. Everything in my inventory were nothing more than lines of random Chinese characters, numbers and letters. It was all jumbled together into incoherent strings of text.

"It kind of looks like my data is corrupted." I said at last.

"Yeah, I was about to say. Go over everything and make sure that there isn't something that could be used."

I nodded.

"Okay."

I began scanning my inventory for several seconds, before something caught my eye. It was an item in my inventory, titled "MHCP001".

"What is that?" Klein asked.

"I don't know."

I tapped the item and equipped it. A small blue gemstone appeared in my palm, taking the shape of a small teardrop. It suddenly hit me. I should have been able to know this gemstone. How had I not recognized her designation?

"Yui?" I whispered.

"What did you say?" Klein asked.

I ignored him and tapped the gemstone. Once I tapped it, a flash of white light appeared from it. Once the flash had cleared, hovering in midair, I saw Yui, the familiar little girl in a dress made of pure white. I let out a gasp as soon as I saw her. Eventually, her eyes opened, and she noticed me.

"Hey, Yui." I spoke at last. "It's me, Kirito. Do you remember me?"

Yui gasped at first, but to my relief she eventually smiled at me as tears of joy formed in her eyes.

"I do!" she said. "I remember you, Daddy!"

She hovered down to me and hugged herself against me, knocking me to the ground and leaving me to hug her back. As we hugged, memories of Asuna and I serving as Yui's parental figures while in SAO flashed within my mind.

"Wait, is that Yui?" Klein asked as he approached us. "Is that _the_ Yui?"

Yui pulled away from the hug, but remained in my lap as she gave Klein a weird look, as if she were confused.

"Are you okay, Yui?" I asked.

Yui continued to stare at Klein with a weird expression, before she finally spoke.

"Who are you?"

Now it was my turn to give Yui a strange look.

"Yui, don't be silly." I said. "You remember Klein, don't you?"

"Mmm-mmm." She grunted as she shook her head.

I just looked at her with surprise.

"Yui? Are you sure you're okay?"

She looked up at me once more.

"Daddy, there's something I should tell you. I'm not the Yui that you remember."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Before SAO ended, when you transferred my data and converted it to that gemstone, you weren't really transferring it."

"What?" Klein asked.

"Yeah, what do you mean, Yui?"

"You copied my data over before it was flushed from the main console."

Klein and I exchanged glances. I turned back to look at Yui.

"And that means?"

"The original Yui was flushed from the console. She's not coming back. I'm just a copy with the original Yui's memories. However, I haven't been activated in some time, so there are gaps in my code and memories. That may explain how I'm unable to remember you, Klein."

It sort of made sense. Yui hadn't been activated in over a year, so I suppose that it might have been possible for her coding could have decayed over time.

"So, I want to know if I'm understanding this correctly." Klein replied. "You're not the original Yui, but a copy of her with all of her memories?"

She turned to look at him.

"Yes, I am a copy of the Yui that you knew from SAO. However, as I cannot remember ever knowing you, I do not have all of her memories. I can't say whether this is permanent or if it's just temporary amnesia."

"Sort of like how in SAO, you forgot that you were a mental health counselling program?"

"Mmm-hmm." She nodded.

"So, what do you remember, Yui?"

"I remember living with you and Mommy in that cabin in the woods and deleting that boss from the game. Speaking of Mommy, where is she? Can I see her?"

Just hearing Yui talk about Asuna set off a painful pang in my chest.

"Actually, Yui... About that..."

"Yes, Daddy?" she interrupted me as she continued to look at me with a loving gaze.

"We're not in SAO anymore. I cleared the game last year. Since then, we've all gone back to the real world and Mommy and I started dating. But she disappeared last week, and Klein and I found a screenshot of a girl that looks exactly like Asuna, who appears to be trapped in this new game we just dove into. It's called ALfheim Online, or ALO, for short."

"I see."

"So, you're a copy of the Yui from SAO? How can you be here right now, Yui?"

"My data was eventually transferred to the last remaining memory space of your NerveGear. And if that is the hardware you're using to dive into ALO, then that's how I can be here. I'm functioning through your NerveGear."

 _Oh, that's right! I did eventually move Yui's data to the last available space on my NerveGear before SAO ended. Once we were rehabilitated, I attempted to move her data off my NerveGear and transfer it to a drive or something, but I never could. And after so many failed attempts, I eventually forgot about it._

"That makes sense. Now, I was going through my inventory when I saw your crystal, it was the only thing that I could equip. That's how I was able to reactivate you. Is there anything you can tell me about ALO?"

"Hold on. I need a few seconds to assess it." she said before she pressed her hand to the side of her head and shut her eyes.

As she sat there and concentrated, I began to think myself.

 _So, this isn't the Yui from SAO, but a copy with some of the original's memories. So, maybe I should call her something else other than "Yui". How about "Proto-Yui" or something like that?_

Before I could think any further, Yui spoke again.

"From what I can tell, this world has been copied from the Sword Art Online servers."

I looked at her with surprise.

"Really?"

"That's crazy." Klein chimed in.

I turned to look at him.

"Agil said that the rights and leftover resources of SAO were sold to the developers of ALO. So, it's not entirely farfetched that they can do this."

He nodded at me. I looked back at Yui.

"Anything else, Yui?"

She nodded.

"Yes. The engine, programming and graphics format are exactly the same. The Cardinal System needs updating, but that's the only thing that sticks out to me."

"Huh. Well, I guess it makes sense why my items, skills and stats can crossover like that."

"Wait, why didn't my stuff transfer over?" Klein asked.

"Well, I think all of my data was saved to my NerveGear. You're not playing with a NerveGear, you're using the AmuSphere. That's probably why."

"That's a fair point."

"It is strange that your data was able to transfer over. I'll take a look at your data and let you know what I find."

She closed her eyes once again.

"Very interesting." She said at last.

"What is it?" Klein asked.

"Daddy's right. This is the same character data that he used while you were in SAO. The format for saved data is almost identical. Whatever skills he had that were similar in both games were ported over and merged."

"Oh. When I looked, I noticed that my Dual Wielding Skill was absent. Is that why?"

She nodded.

"Yes. ALO doesn't have a skill that fits into the "Dual Wielding Slot". And it's not just that. Your items seem to be missing and/or corrupted."

I chuckled.

"Yeah, I noticed."

"No player is going to notice that something's off unless they take a closer look at you. However, it would be wise to delete them before the error detection program picks up on this."

"Yeah, that's not a bad idea."

I swiped down with my left hand and opened the menu. I then proceeded to delete all of my items from SAO. A confirmation alert popped up and I relunctantly pressed the confirm button. I let out a sigh after I had pressed the button and looked down at the ground.

"Is something wrong, Daddy?" Yui asked.

I turned to look at her with a sad smile on my face.

"No, nothing. It's just that that's two years' worth of work gone."

"Why are you so broken up about that?" Klein asked. "That work was also dedicated to getting us out of SAO!"

I shrugged.

"I don't know. I kind of understand now why Asuna was sad after SAO ended. It's a lot of stuff to just let go of."

"I can understand that, I suppose."

I turned back to Yui.

"Okay, Yui. Back to business. What do I do about my skills?"

"No one but you can see them, Daddy. Only if you invite them to look at your window. And there's the Game Master. As long as he doesn't see them, you should be okay."

"Oh. Awesome."

 _Note to self, don't let the GM see you. And if he does, don't let him get to close. Oh, who am I kidding? I don't even know who the GM is nor what he looks like!_

Klein must have seen the distressed look on my face, because he spoke.

"What's wrong, Kiri-Dude?"

"Nothing."

Klein looked at Yui.

"Yui, are you identified at all by the system?"

Yui closed her eyes before speaking a few seconds later.

"Yes. The system is classifying me as a player support program. In the world of the game, I'm a "Navigation Pixie"."

Just as she said that, she began to glow with a bright light, and it seemed like she disappeared.

"Hey!" I exclaimed as she faded.

"I'm down here, Daddy!" I heard Yui's voice.

"Huh?" I asked as I looked down at my lap.

There Yui was, standing on my knee. She was now only a few inches tall and had two pairs of white translucent wings on her back. She also had a blue flower in her hair, but another than that, she retained the same appearance, still wearing her white dress from SAO.

"This is what I look like as a Pixie!"

"Huh." I said as she flew up to me and came to stop in the palm of my hand. "That's kind of cool."

Klein walked over to us.

"Yeah, she's kinda cute like this!" he said as he tapped her face with his index finger. "Coochie-coochie-coo!"

"Hey, stop it!" she exclaimed as she put up her hands. "That's annoying!"

"You had admin privileges in SAO." I said as Klein kept tapping her. "Do you still have 'em?"

Yui looked up at me as she pushed Klein's finger away.

"No. The system will only allow me to access the wide area maps and the reference database."

"Wow." Klein said. "You seem to be a far cry of what you used to be."

I cast a glare in his direction, which caused him to shrink back. I turned back to Yui.

"So, I was supposed to start the game in a town in Spriggan Territory. How come I ended up here in this forest instead?"

"I don't know. Your location data may be corrupted. Or perhaps there was some interference?"

I sighed.

"The World Tree can't be that close to where we're at now. Well, let's go."

I stood up and as soon as I did that, black wings appeared on my back.

"Whoa. So, these are my wings, huh?"

"Oh, yeah! Kirito and I were asking about flying earlier! How can we do it?"

I turned to look at Klein, who had red wings appearing from his back.

"You guys will have to access your controllers first. Raise your left hand. Then, position your fingers as if your grabbing something."

I did as she said and eventually, a device that looked like the Nunchuck for the Nintendo Wii materialized in my hand.

"Now, pull it towards yourself to elevate. Push it away to descend and move it left or right to turn."

I did as she told me and let out a gasp of surprise as I began to soar upward.

"Whoa!" I exclaimed with surprise.

"Hold down the button to accelerate." Yui continued. "To decelerate, just ease up on it a little."

I did as she told me once again and I slowed down in my ascent. Klein however shot upwards toward the sky.

"I can fly!" he exclaimed as he soared upwards.

"Klein, wait!" I urged. "What are you doing?"

He ignored me, as he kept soaring upwards, before flying in the opposite direction of us.

"I believe I can fly!" he exclaimed, before slamming face first into a tree.

I rolled my eyes as I watched what had just occurred.

"Show off." I replied.

I did my best to fly over to where Klein had landed and as I went, I was unable to control how I flew. I dropped back onto my feet and looked at him as he sat up, rubbing his head as he did.

"You need to work on flying." I said.

"So, do you." He replied.

"Are you okay?"

He didn't answer for a few seconds as he just stared off into space.

"Yeah," he spoke at last. "I lost some HP, but I'll be okay, for now."

"We need to get a move on. Yui, where's the nearest town?"

Yui, who had followed me and was now hovering slightly above my shoulder, spoke.

"There's one in Sylph Territory that's west of here. It's a town called "Sylvain". That's the closest one."

Then, a look of confusion crossed her face.

"Yui?" Klein said her name. "Is something wrong?"

Yui turned away from us.

"There's other players near here."

I turned to look at Klein.

"What do you think, Klein?"

"Well, other players may mean the option to ask for directions. Or it could mean a conflict since ALO encourages PKing. Either one works for me."

I let out a sigh as I opened up my inventory and equipped the starter weapon that had remained. It was probably low tier and didn't do much damage. He did the same, equipping a blade that looked somewhat like a Kitana.

"Alright, then." I said. "Let's go."

Just before we started to move, I heard an audible ding go off.

"Huh?" I automatically questioned it.

I swiped down and opened my menu.

"What is it?" Klein asked as I scanned through the available options.

"Someone sent me a gift box..." I muttered.

"Who?"

I shrugged as I tapped on the gift box. The box came a note:

 _A true warrior should never be without this. – A.K._

"A.K?" I said. "Who's A.K?"

"Tap it!" Klein urged me. "Open it up!"

I did as he told and opened the gift box. I was surprised when a coat materialized onto my shoulders and flowed down to just below my waist. I could recognize the jet black coat anywhere. It was the Coat of Midnight, the coat that had been destroyed in my fight with Heathcliff! But how could it be here? ALO was a different game than SAO and the coat had been destroyed anyway!

"A.K. Akihiko Kayaba." Klein muttered.

I turned to look at him.

"What?"

"It's Akihiko Kayaba. It's gotta be. Could he still have an influence on the game? Or for that matter, could his consciousness be residing in your NerveGear?"

"How can he? Once SAO ended, Akihiko Kayaba died!"

Klein shrugged, but continued talking.

"Well, what else could it be? Who else could have left you that message and how else could you have gotten that coat back?"

I shrugged. I had to hand it to Klein.

"It's the only thing that makes sense. But if it is him, then how can it be? Like I said, he died!"

Klein nodded.

"Yeah, I know. But there is no other explanation."

I sighed.

"You're probably right. But there's no time to deal with that now. We need to move along before that group of players move on."

He nodded once again.

"Alright. Let's get going."

I nodded and with that, we got moving.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for this chapter! Originally, this chapter was supposed to be longer, but I don't want really long chapters, so I decided to cut it here.

* What did you guys think? I hope you guys like that Klein came along to assist Kirito in the investigation, as opposed to the Anime. I hope that I'm doing a good job of adapting Fairy Dance arc.

* One last thing, I know that Yui's appearance here doesn't match her appearance in the canon. But what can I say? I just don't like the kind of dress she wears in Fairy Dance and onward.

* If I failed to mention anything here, don't hesitate to tell me. That being said, I think that's going to do it for me. I'm going to go though, so have a fantastic day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _txion447 (Chapter 18): Great chapter, can't wait for the one and to the old friend_

Thanks, txion. I'm glad that you liked the chapter. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Draconic king (Chapter 18): I have to admit this is far better then the anime or manga I can't wait to see where this goes_

Thanks, Draconic king. I'm glad that you like it. I will definitely say that the Anime has its flaws. I can't say the same for the manga though, as I haven't read it. I plan to eventually get around to doing that, though. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Klein and Kirito find themselves helping a Sylph player in her conflict with three Salamanders. After the player is out of her conflict, she schools Klein and Kirito about the game and the hatred between player races. Asuna finds herself in a problematic situation.


	20. Chapter 20: Captive Queen

Chapter 20: Captive Queen

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty!

* I'm not sure what to say, so let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _December 7_ _th_ _, 2025 – Skies Over The Ancient Forest_

 _Nine Days Remaining_

Klein and I intercepted the four players that were west of us.

"Daddy, you guys are going to want to descend now!" Yui spoke from her place above my shoulder.

"Um, right!" Klein replied. "How do you do that again?"

"Lower the controller to descend."

"Right!"

Klein then rapidly lowered his controller, which caused him to shoot down toward the forest floor. I shook my head as I heard an audible thud from the forest floor.

"Oh, Klein." I muttered as I soared downwards at a slower pace. "What are we going to do with you?"

Even with my slow descent compared to Klein's, I still landed face first in the grass on the forest floor. I let out a groan of pain as I pushed myself up and out of the grass.

"Damn." I muttered. "I think I got the flying down, but I need to work on the landing."

I stood up to look at the four players. Three of them were levitating above the ground, all of them clad in red armor or red tunics. If my knowledge was correct, they were from the Salamander race. The player that they seemed to be attempting to rob was a female. She had fair skin, long blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail and wore a green and white dress type thing. I would also say that there was a slight lack of modesty to her outfit. She was also armed with a Kitana that looked similar to Klein's.

"What are you doing?!" she exclaimed. "Go, get out of here!"

Instead of listening to her, I turned my head.

"Klein, where are you?" I exclaimed.

A hand popped up out of a bush behind me.

"Ugh." I heard Klein groan. "Present."

I turned back to the four players in front of me.

"Does someone want to tell me why three guys are fighting one girl?" I asked. "It's pretty uncool if you ask me."

"You get my vote!" Klein exclaimed from his spot in the bushes.

"If you're just going to stay there in the bushes, don't even bother helping."

Klein answered by flying out of the bushes and coming to rest on his feet, standing next to me.

"Nah, man." He said. "I'm good to go!"

"You better get your asses out of here noobs. And fast!" one of the Salamanders said.

Klein and I didn't move from our spots. As we continued standing there, another Salamander finally spat another threat.

"You asked for it. Get ready to die!"

He charged forward as the female player let out a gasp. But I just stood there, waiting for the Salamander to strike me. Once he got to me, I easily deflected his strike with my simple starter sword. The girl only gasped with surprise, refusing to say anything. Meanwhile, another Salamander charged me, carrying something that looked like a lance. And to my surprise, Klein leaped in front of me and grabbed the end of the lance, stopping the Salamander's advance.

"See ya." He eventually said, as he pushed the attacker back, sending him flying.

As he did that, I turned to look at the girl, who looked on with shock.

"Excuse me!" I called out to her.

She looked over to me once I got her attention.

"Hi, um, I hate to interrupt you, but do you mind if we take this?" I asked.

"Um, I guess if you really want to." She replied.

"Thanks, it's really been a while."

"It's not like they're going to let you walk away anymore anyway." She muttered under her breath.

Meanwhile as I approached them, Klein was in combat with one of the Salamanders.

"How dare you attack your race!" one of them exclaimed.

"Uh, sorry! I'm scared of commitment!" Klein exclaimed.

As Klein was busy with one of them, I sprinted past one of them and sent a cut across their side.

"Where did he go?!" his partner spoke with shock.

The guy I cut didn't even get to last that long, as he dissipated into red flames, which must have been ALO's death animation. I heard a slight gasp from behind me, maybe it was the remaining Salamanders or the female player, I didn't really know. I turned around to look at everyone. Even Klein had stopped combatting the Salamander to look at me after I had slain their third guy. I just grinned.

"Who's next?" I finally asked.

When no one said a word, Klein decided to speak.

"You want to give up yet?"

The Salamander that Klein spoke to looked at him and finally raised his weapon in response. Klein chuckled in response.

"Have it your way, then." He replied.

As he got back into combat with the second Salamander, I turned my attention to the partner of the guy I had just killed. I closed the distance between me and him and quickly, but accurately cut across his abdomen, slicing him in half. I looked up at Klein who was busy fighting the last Salamander.

"Leave him to me." I called out. "He's mine."

Surprisingly, the Salamander held up his hands in an effort to surrender.

"Hey, come on pal!" he exclaimed. "Do we actually have to fight? My magic skill is about to reach 900. I'd rather not die and have to face that penalty."

"That depends." I replied as I stepped closer, waving my sword as I did. "Are you going to leave that girl alone?"

He nodded without a word.

"Okay." I said, not sheathing my sword. "Then get out of here."

He turned around and flew away without a word. I turned to look at the girl who we had saved.

"How about you, Miss?" I asked with a grin.

She stared back at me, before sighing and lowering her sword.

"I guess I'll pass, too." She said at last. "But next time, don't even bother stepping in! I had it under control!"

Klein chuckled as he came to stand next to us, the girl returning her Kitana to its scabbard as he did.

"Hey, that's not what it looked like from our angle! It looked like you were about to be robbed!"

She turned away from him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, well, whatever!"

I turned around and saw that the flames from the two Salamanders were still present.

"Hey, what are those flames?" I asked.

"Shh! They're Remain Lights." She whispered. "The players you killed can still hear you!"

That caused Klein and I to shut our mouths. The flames died down a few seconds later, causing the female player to let out a sigh.

"Okay, now we can talk. So, what do you guys want? Do you want me to thank you? Run away? Give you all my items? What?"

I returned my sword to my scabbard, as Klein did the same.

"No. Ma'am, we don't mean you any harm." I said. "We just need directions. And some information, if it's not too much to ask. Oh, I'm Kirito, by the way. And this is my buddy, Klein."

A small red blush appeared on her cheeks.

"Like the... No, no... That's not...!"

"Like what? What do you mean?" I asked, interrupting her.

"Like, Kirito as in the Kirito..."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Like the Kirito from The Death Game, right?" I asked.

She gave a small nod, still lightly blushing. I only chuckled in response.

"Well, only in inspiration." I said.

"Huh?" she asked with confusion.

"I mean, come on! Kirito is a legend! He's the hero of that story! He's an influence for so many people!"

I heard a ding and swiped down, opening my menu. I looked down and let out a confused grunt, to see that Klein had sent me a message. I opened it and it said:

 _You know that you're just bragging about yourself, right?_

I turned to look at Klein, who was smirking at me.

"Oh, yeah man." I said. "Totally."

I looked back at the girl, who was regarding us with a weird look. I finally decided that I should explain further.

"No, actually. We're obviously not really them. We're just really inspired by the characters from the story, as well as real life. Hell, sometimes we even wish that we were the real thing!"

"Actually, I don't know about that one, Kirito. I'm not sure if I'm being trapped in a video game for two years."

"Yeah, you're right. Total buzzkill."

The girl continued to look at us.

"So, you guys aren't the real thing?"

I shook my head.

"No. We were just inspired by them. Although, my buddy here is maybe a bit more so. He practically has a hard on for the real thing!"

I felt someone elbow me after that and I turned to see Klein casting an angry look my way. I turned back to the girl.

"I'm Leafa." She said at last. "So, what are you doing all the way out here? More importantly, what are a Spriggan and a Salamander doing hanging out together?"

I chuckled.

"Well, we're friends in real life and I'm not sure if I'm going to be playing for long, so I just picked the Spriggan just because he looked cool to me personally. As for Klein, I can't say why he chose to play as a Salamander."

"Well, regardless of why you chose to play as a Salamander, you're definitely not going to be popular with your race after what you pulled." Leafa replied.

"Duly noted." Klein said.

"What about my other question? Why are you guys all the way out here?"

"I guess we got lost." I said with another chuckle, scratching my neck as I did.

She just stared at me in response. And eventually, she began laughing. In response, I just stared at her with a confused expression.

"What?" I asked at last.

"How could you get that lost?! Spriggan Territory is way to the east! God, you're weird!"

I furrowed my eyebrows as I felt my face heat up.

"Well, it's not my fault!" I exclaimed. "My game glitched out while I was being transported to the town in Spriggan Territory and I spawned in The Ancient Forest instead!"

Leafa stopped laughing and the humor seemed to disappear from her face.

"Well, ALO is in its open beta. So, maybe it has something to do with that?"

Klein put his hand on his chin.

"I guess that could explain it." he replied. "How long has this game been out?"

"Maybe about three or four months? Well, anyway, thank you for helping me out."

I shrugged.

"It's no problem."

"Well, do you guys have any plans for the rest of the night? I can buy you two a drink as thanks. Besides, didn't you say something about directions?"

I nodded.

"A drink sounds awesome!" Klein chimed in.

"To you, of course it does."

I turned back to Leafa.

"Well, we can talk about what you need once we get back to town." She replied.

"Actually, can we start now and talk on the way?" I asked.

"Um, sure, I don't mind. I guess. What do you want to know?"

"Just more about this world. And about the tree especially."

Leafa looked confused.

"Tree? You mean The World Tree?"

I nodded.

"Why do you want to know about The World Tree? You guys obviously haven't been playing for very long, so you wouldn't last a minute in there."

"What do you mean we wouldn't last?" Klein asked.

She turned to look at him.

"The World Tree is hollow and on top of that, the inside is guarded by the highest level enemies that you've ever seen. It's been almost half a year since the game's release, and no one has gotten to the top of the tree. That's the grand quest, you know? Getting to the top of that tree."

I nodded.

"So, why do you guys need to know about The World Tree?"

"I need to get there as soon as possible."

Leafa just stared at me in response.

"Let's uh, talk about the rest of this once we get out of here. I may not look like it, but I'm quite the veteran and I know a lot about this game. There's a neutral village to the north of there. It's a little out of the way, but we can fly there."

I scratched the back of my neck. She looked at me with concern.

"Is something wrong, Kirito?" she eventually asked.

I shook my head.

"No, that sounds fine. It's just, what about Sylvain? Isn't that town closer to us?"

Leafa looked at me with confusion.

"What?" I finally asked.

"God, you guys don't know anything about this game, do you?"

"Hey!" Klein exclaimed. "I take offense to that!"

"You take offense to everything." I replied.

"Sorry, but it's the truth." Leafa replied. "Sylvain is Sylph Territory."

"So?" Klein and I asked in unison.

"You guys aren't Sylphs. If you're in their territory, you can't attack them. But they can attack _you_."

"As long as we don't provoke them, I would hope. And you'll be with us, won't you, Leafa?"

She just looked at us, before letting out a sigh.

"If you guys really want to go, I'll take you. I can't guarantee your safety, though."

"I thought you'd vouch for us though!" Klein exclaimed.

"Well, you guys may have helped me out, but you still are strangers."

"Oh, come on! That's cold!" Klein replied.

I chuckled, having slight doubts about this girl. So, I decided to consult Yui.

"How about it, Yui? Do you think we can trust her?"

The pixie appeared from my coat pocket and came to hover above my shoulder.

"I am unsure." She said as she hovered there.

Leafa gasped as she saw Yui.

"Is that a private pixie?" she asked.

I turned to look at her.

"Pipe down!" I replied, before turning to look at Yui once more. "Yui, just tell me."

"She's goodhearted and she means well. I think we can trust her. Either way, we're going to need all the help we can get to save Mommy."

Leafa just stared on with confusion.

"Save Mommy? What the hell?" she asked. "Is this some kind of Quest?"

"Yeah, you could say that." I said as I slightly turned my head to face her. "But it's more personal than that."

Everything was silent between the four of us now or at least it was until Klein said something.

"God, man. What's with you being so edgy?"

I turned to look at him.

"You know why."

"Am I supposed to be confused?" Leafa spoke up.

I turned to look at her.

"Sorry." I replied apologetically.

She continued to look at me and eventually she gave me a little smile.

"Well, if we're going to go, we should go now. Let's fly!"

I saw two pairs of translucent green wings appear on her back as she turned around.

"Um, yeah. About that..." I spoke as Yui went back to my coat pocket.

Leafa turned back around, looking at me with confusion.

"What?" she asked.

"We don't exactly know how to fly." I said.

"Yeah, not without the controller, anyway." Klein chimed in.

"Thank you, Klein, for stating my point." I said.

"No problem, dude!"

I rolled my eyes as Leafa turned to face us again.

"It's really not that difficult." She said. "There's a little trick to it."

"A little trick?" Klein repeated her words.

"Uh-huh. Just turn around, but don't access your controller."

I raised an eyebrow, but did as she said.

"Okay." I replied.

As I turned, I heard the soft chime sound accompanied the appearance of my wings. I then felt Leafa put her hand on the middle of my back.

"Can you feel where my hand is touching you?" she asked.

Before I could answer, Yui flipped out, leaving my coat pocket as she did.

"Hey!" she exclaimed with annoyance. "You can't do that! The only people who can touch Daddy are me and Mommy!"

I felt Leafa retract her hand as Yui said this. I looked over at Yui.

"Yui, calm down! She's just trying to help!"

She just shook her head.

"No!"

I let out a sigh, before I plucked Yui out of the air and stuffed her into my coat pocket, much to her dismay. I turned my head to look at Leafa.

"Sorry about that." I replied.

"What was that all about?" she asked. "Why did she call you "Daddy"? Is that what she's set to?"

"It's complicated." I said. "Can we get moving?"

She nodded.

"Turn back around."

I did as she told and eventually, I felt her hand touch the middle of my back again.

"So, you can feel where my hand is touching you, right?"

I nodded.

"Okay. Imagine that you have virtual bones and muscles here, spreading out into your wings. Once you do that, try to move them."

"Virtual bones and muscles, huh?" Klein asked.

I began to concentrate, and I eventually heard a rustling sound coming from my back.

"Yeah!" Leafa said. "Just like that!"

I felt her hand leave my back and as I concentrated, my wings fluttered still. Leafa meanwhile walked over to Klein and did the same thing that she had done for me. Once Klein had gotten the hang of it, she came back over to me.

"Okay, now try doing that same motion, but try harder."

I took a deep breath before concentrating again, as it seemed Klein did the same. I could hear the rustling again, but this time, it was a bit louder.

"Okay, I'm going to hit you in the back now, which will send you flying."

I didn't say anything.

"Um, I'm not sure how I feel about that." Klein replied.

I turned my head to face him with a grin on my face.

"Oh, come on. How bad can it..."

I was interrupted when Leafa hit me in the back, which yes, sent me flying up into the air. I tore through the forest canopy and shot up into the sky.

"...Be?" I exclaimed as I soared through the air.

I was by myself up there for a few seconds. Before I knew it, Klein also shot up through the leaves.

"Hey, fancy meeting you here!" he said as he soared past me.

"Oh, shut up!"

We continued flying up in the sky, trying to learn to maneuver. And when we didn't come back down, I guess Leafa decided to come looking for us, because she appeared out of the forest canopy just now.

"Kirito, Klein!" she called our names.

"How do we make it stop?!" Klein exclaimed, having pour control over himself.

Leafa said nothing for a few seconds.

"Um, Miss Leafa? Hello?!"

She finally began to laugh.

"I'm sorry, that's just too funny!" she said at last. "And just call me Leafa."

Eventually, a few minutes passed and we both finally got the hang of flying.

"Oh my God, this is so awesome!" Klein exclaimed as he did a flip in midair.

"I know, right?" Leafa exclaimed as she flew next to us. "Looks like you guys finally got the hang of it!"

"Seems like it!" I yelled over the sound of the wind.

"This way!" she exclaimed as she flew forward with a burst of speed. "Try to keep up!"

"Don't worry about us!" I exclaimed in return.

"If you say so!" I could hardly make out what she yelled as she took off.

Leafa continued to fly forward and I followed closely, not even waiting to see if Klein could keep up. Eventually she turned back to look at us and a surprised look came onto her face. I smirked in return.

"Told you we could go fast." I chuckled. "Speaking of which, is that as fast as you can go?

She eventually smiled back at me.

"Now you're in for it!" she replied as she sped up.

The three of us continued to fly over forests and mountains, as the wind whipped at my hair.

"Could you guys slow down?!" I heard Klein yell from behind us.

I turned my head back to look at him struggling to keep up with us. I just smiled at him.

"I'm sure you'll get the hang of it eventually!" I said, before looking ahead of me once more.

I heard laughing next to me, so I turned to see Leafa giggling to herself.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"You're the only person I know that can handle flying at this speed! How are you so good at this and today's your first day?"

"Oh um, I got used to the AmuSphere with a different game."

"Oh, okay."

 _Sylph Territory – Sylvain_

We were just now flying above Sylvain.

"Well, we made it!" I replied.

"Says you!" I heard Klein exclaim.

I turned to see that Klein was quite a distance behind us. I just chuckled.

"Try to keep up, Klein!" I replied.

I looked back at Leafa, as she looked at me.

"Okay, we're going to land at the base of the Central Tower! You do know how to land. Right?"

"Sure. You just uh, stop flying, right?"

And I did just that. I stopped flying.

 _Klein_

Leafa and I listened to Kirito scream as he began falling towards the ground, which must have been at least a hundred feet below us. Several seconds passed and we heard a thud from below.

"Ow." We barely heard Kirito speak from the ground.

 _Kirito_

Once I hit the ground, my HP began to rapidly deplete. Eventually, I lost all of my HP and my form disappeared. Even though my form had disappeared, I could still see. And I saw a small purple flame appear where I had disappeared. I saw a timer briefly pop up, in front of me, but it quickly disappeared. I then noticed that my body was slowly reforming. Once I sat up, I looked around me in confusion. I saw several Sylph players pass me with questioning looks, but none of them said anything. I didn't even see Klein or Leafa around, which surprised me.

"You idiot." A female voice spoke from behind me.

"Huh?" I spoke as I turned around, to see Leafa standing behind me.

"What were you thinking?" she asked as she leaned down to look at me with her hands on her hips.

Before I could answer, Klein landed not so gracefully next to her.

"He wasn't. Kirito is the kind to leap before he thinks."

"Thanks." I said. "What happened?"

"Um, you fell to your death?" Leafa asked.

"No, no, no. I get that part. How did I respawn so fast?"

Leafa's eyebrows scrunched together as she gazed at me.

"I used a resurrection potion. I only have a small supply of them, so try not to get yourself killed again. Oh and, I won't revive you if you get yourself killed. Just saying."

"Can I help it if I didn't take fall damage into account?"

She chuckled.

"Fall damage has always been a thing in video games, Kirito. What were you thinking?"

"He's also the kind of person to speak before he thinks!" Klein chimed in.

"Hey, now." I replied.

Leafa shook her head before changing the subject.

"Anyway, this is Sylvain. Hope the fly here was worth it."

I looked around. I had to admit; Sylvain was a beautiful city.

"I guess we'll find out." I finally said.

"In case something like that ever happens again and you do survive, I can heal you. Undines are the only race you specialize in high level healing spells, but it's an important one to learn. You guys should learn it."

 _Each race has a unique bonus, huh?_

"What about the Spriggans? Do they have anything that their good at?"

"Yeah, what about Salamanders? What can they do?"

Leafa put her finger on her chin before speaking.

"Well, Spriggans are good at treasure hunting and illusion magic. Neither of those things are helpful in battle. As for Salamanders, they can use fire magic and your race are good fighters. Just be careful, your race and the Sylphs are at war currently."

"Eh, I don't use magic anyway." he replied.

"What? Since when?"

"Um, since always?"

I shrugged.

"Whatever."

"So, this is a Sylph town, huh? And it's beautiful."

"I know, right?" Leafa chimed in.

The three of us just stood there, admiring the city for a few seconds, before a new voice called from behind us.

"Leafa!"

The three of us turned to see a shorter Sylph running towards us. He had longer ears, light green hair, green eyes and a green tunic with some kind of armor.

"Who...?" Klein began to mutter.

"Must be one of her friends." I replied.

"Thank God you're okay!" the boy exclaimed, waving at her as he ran towards us.

"Oh hey, Recon." She replied once he reached us.

The way she said it sounded weird, so I focused on the guy and eventually his nametag popped up. His name was Recon, but it wasn't pronounced the way it should have been. He stopped to catch his breath once he reached us.

"I knew you'd survive!" he said, looking at her as Klein and I just looked on.

That's when he noticed us for the first time. He leaped back and got into a defensive stance.

"Leafa, what are you doing hanging out with a Spriggan and a Salamander?! They're our enemies!"

At this point, I began to slowly back up as I defensively raised my hands.

"No, it's okay! Really!" Leafa vouched for us. "They fought off the Salamanders for me! Well, if we're being honest, the Spriggan did more work than the Salamander, but that doesn't matter!"

"Hey, I take offense to that!" Klein explained.

"Hello, Klein? You take offense to everything!" I replied.

"Well, maybe not everything."

" _Literally_ everything."

I turned away from Klein and looked at Leafa and Recon in conversation. Leafa turned to look at me just as I looked back at them.

"Kirito, Klein, this is my friend, Recon." She said. "His name is loosely derived from the English word of reconnaissance. However, instead of pronouncing it as "Ree-con", the way it should be pronounced, he pronounces it as "wreck-on"."

"Hey, there." I said as I stuck out my hand. "My name is Kirito, and this is..."

"Klein." He answered for me.

Recon chuckled and stepped forward, outstretching his hand as a small blush appeared on his face.

"Hi, nice to meet ya." He replied as he scratched the back of his head.

He took my hand, but he didn't shake it. He eventually gasped and let go of my hand.

"Wait!" he exclaimed, putting his hand on the handle of his blade as he jumped back. "What am I talking about?! I take that back!"

He looked at Leafa next.

"Are you sure about them, Leafa? They could be spies!"

I sighed.

"Look, man, I'm new to this game, I don't know enough to be a spy. And even if I was, I'm not going to be playing for long."

"That's exactly the sort of thing a spy would say!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever." I replied.

Leafa just chuckled.

"No, really! They're cool! I guess if they were spies, Kirito couldn't be such a ditz!"

Now it was my turn to be upset. I turned to look at her with an upset look on my face.

"Gee, thanks a lot." I muttered, while Klein just shrugged next to me.

Recon looked at Leafa with a worried look on his face.

"Anyways, Sigurd and the others are waiting for you at the tavern."

"Oh, that's right!" she replied as she put her hand to her chin, thinking about her situation with this "Sigurd" person.

She eventually closed her eyes with a smile as she clapped her hands together.

"I'm sorry, on second thought I can't go today!"

Recon looked at her with a worried and shocked expression.

"Huh? You're not going?"

"Nope. I promised these two that I'd buy them a drink for helping me."

She began to walk forward, taking my hand in hers as she did.

"See ya later!"

"W-Wait, you don't have to..."

"Hey, wait for me!" Klein exclaimed as he started to catch up.

"Leafa..." I heard Recon mutter her name in disappointment.

 _Later – The Tavern_

Klein, Leafa and I had been sitting at a table in the tavern for the last few minutes. An NPC waitress had just arrived with our drinks along with two plates of what looked like bread, setting them down onto the table.

"Go ahead, guys!" she encouraged us once the waitress left. "Drink up!"

"Thanks." I replied as I reached for my cup.

"Who was that Recon guy anyway?" Klein asked. "Was he your boyfriend?"

I was surprised when Yui popped out of my pocket and snatched up one of the bread thingies on the plate.

"Yeah!" she chimed in. "Are the two of you in love?"

Leafa's face instantly grew as red as a cherry.

"Eww! As if! We're not in love! W-We're just in the same party is all!" she muttered, stuttering a decent amount.

I chuckled myself as I leaned forward, putting my chin in my hand.

"I don't know. From where I was standing, you guys seemed tight. And no offense, but Recon seemed kind of clingy."

"Whatever! I know him in real life! We go to the same school and we're classmates, but that's it!"

"Mmm-hmm. Yeah, sure." Klein replied.

"I'm serious!"

Klein chuckled in response.

"By all means, so am I!"

I rolled my eyes with a sigh.

"Okay, enough. Klein, just leave her alone."

"Fine."

Silence then passed between the four of us. Eventually to break the tension, she cleared her throat.

"Bottoms up, guys! Thanks again for your help!"

The three of us clanged our cups together and began to drink. As I drank, a thought came to mind. I put my cup down and looked up at her.

"Those guys in the forest were playing pretty rough. Are gangs of PKers normal for this game or what?"

Leafa looked up at me with a sort of triggered look, I guess?

"Well for one thing, the Salamander and Sylph races never got along. But those guys were organized and that wasn't happening until recently." She spoke as she turned away from us and looked down at her cup. "I don't know. If you ask me, they're gearing up to try to clear The World Tree soon."

I grunted as I grit my teeth with frustration.

 _All the more reason for me to try and get there,_ I thought to myself.

Klein seemed to notice my frustration.

"We picked the wrong time to dive in, didn't we?" he asked.

I shrugged, while Leafa looked at us with a confused glance.

"Can you tell us about The World Tree?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah. I thought you mentioned it before. What about it?" she asked.

"I want to know everything that you know. How difficult any enemies staged there are, what the quickest way to the top is, stuff like that. We, no, _I_ have to get to the top as soon as I can."

She chuckled.

"Aren't you a little ambitious?"

I didn't say anything in return. Leafa eventually sighed.

"Join the club. Every player wants to get to the top. You could say that's the grand quest of ALfheim Online."

"What does that mean?" Klein asked.

She turned to look at us.

"You know how your limited on the amount of time you can fly?" she asked.

We both nodded.

"The fact is none of the races can fly continuously for more than ten minutes at a time. However, at the top of the tree is the Floating City and in it lives Oberon the Fairy King. The first race to reach him will be reborn as an advanced class of fairy known as Alfs. And what's cool about that is they'll be able to fly around for as long as they want!"

Klein and I exchanged glances. Apparently, that name resonated with him as well.

"That is cool." He said.

I shrugged.

"I guess. Getting back to the point. How does someone get to the top of the tree?"

She just looked at me with the same confused glance.

"At the base of the tree, there's a big dome. That's the gateway to the Floating City. But then you have to get past the NPCs that guard it and word is their super powerful."

"Word is?" Klein asked. "You mean you haven't been there yourself?"

She shook her head.

"They must be powerful if no one's cleared it yet." I replied.

"Well, no duh no one's cleared it. ALO's only been out for a few months and it hasn't left its open beta yet."

"Why would they put a grand quest that's nearly impossible to clear in the game's beta? Why not save it for the full launch of ALO?"

She shrugged.

"Probably to give players an incentive to continue playing past the beta."

"That's not too farfetched." Klein chimed in.

"Maybe there's a key quest that everyone's missed?" I suggested.

"Unlikely."

"Maybe one race can't make it there on their own?" Klein replied.

I turned my head to look at him.

"What like a partnership between multiple races? You're joking."

"Why would anyone work together on it, though?" she chimed in. "Why help someone else, when you may not get the reward?"

I looked at Klein as his eyes went wide.

"Well, I'm out of ideas. We're closed!"

Yui giggled as she nibbled on the bread that she had swiped from the plate. I let out a frustrated sigh.

"So, it's impossible to get to the top of The World Tree?"

I thought I saw a look of sympathy cross her face.

"What's so important about you getting to the top anyway?"

I sighed and shook my head.

"I'm sorry Leafa. You just wouldn't understand."

She continued to look at me with sympathy. No, not sympathy. She looked worried. Yui dropped her piece of bread and flew up to sit on my shoulder.

"Daddy?" she asked with worry.

"Dude," Klein spoke. "There's only one other time that I've seen that look. And it worries me."

If I had a look on my face that worried them, it must have been a look of determination. Crazed determination at that, but whatever. I let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry. It's just that I can't wait around. I have to get there as soon as I can." I said as I gently plucked Yui from my shoulder and placed her back in my coat pocket. "Thanks for the information, Leafa."

I stood up from the table, ready to leave the café. I heard someone hurry in getting up and following me.

"Wait, you're just going to go to The World Tree?" she asked.

"Uh-huh. I need to see it for myself." I said. "And besides, I'm not getting there any faster."

"You can't just go alone! It's far away and you'll have to fight a bunch of monsters! I know you can handle yourself, but..." she began to stutter as I continue walking.

I was about to leave the café when she spoke again.

"If you want, I'll take you there!"

I stopped and turned around.

"That's not necessary, Leafa. Besides, it feels wrong to do that to someone I've only just met."

Klein looked at me with confusion.

"Kirito, do you honestly think that we're going to get there on our own? We're going to need help!"

"I never told you that you had to help. I'm fully capable of doing this myself."

I turned and once again made my way to the door.

"So, I'm assuming that you already know the way?" Leafa asked as I heard her footsteps. "How about the Guardians? Have you already thought up a strategy, even being new to ALO?"

"Uh... I'm sure I'll think of... you know, something?"

I looked over at Leafa, who had a stern look on her face.

"You're not taking no for an answer, are you?"

She smirked.

"You're not getting rid of me that easily!" she replied.

"Hey, no one said anything about getting rid of you! It's just... It's just that..." I sighed. "Look, I humbly accept your offer."

She chuckled.

"Humbly, huh?" she asked.

I shrugged.

"Can you give me the night? I may need some time to think."

"Hey, we all have things to do. Can you guys meet with me again tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure."

"What he said." Klein chimed in.

"Okay, then I'll meet you guys here tomorrow at 3:00 P.M. sharp! Anyway, I have to log out now."

She swiped down and opened her menu.

"When you're ready, you guys can log out in one of the rooms upstairs, okay? See you tomorrow!"

"Wait!" I exclaimed as I reached out to her before she could log out.

"Huh?" she grunted as she turned to me.

"I just wanted to say thank you." I replied.

She just shot me a shy smile, before she returned to logging out. Once she was gone, I turned to Klein.

"Well? Out with it."

He looked at me with confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"When I was freaking everyone out, you said that you had only seen the look on my face one other time. What other time were you talking about?"

Klein's eyebrows scrunched together.

"It was almost two years ago at this point, I think? When you went after St. Nicholas, the Christmas Boss in Aincrad? You looked so determined that I thought you'd get yourself killed."

I forced myself to maintain eye contact with him as I sighed.

"Klein, that was a long time ago. I was in a bad place. I had gotten the first real family that I had ever known killed and I saw a potential way to bring them back. I was going to get that item whatever the cost was."

"Well, some good it proved to be then. At least it was useful for something. And what do you mean they were your first real family? Didn't your real family count?"

"Well, yeah. Now they count. But not then anyway. Before SAO, I never really fit in with my family. That feeling only worsened once I learned that I was adopted. The Moonlit Black Cats was the first time that I felt like I really fit in. I felt like I belonged."

"What about us? Aren't we family to you?"

"Do you even have to ask that? All of you guys: You, Asuna, Agil, Lisbeth, Silica and Sachi are my family. Just as much as my real family, if not more so."

"Well, that's a nice thing to hear."

"So, moving on. Leafa said that we could log out in one of the rooms upstairs, right?"

"Yeah. Who knew the café doubled as an Inn? Why can't we just log out as is?"

"I don't know. We'll have to ask her tomorrow."

 _Suguha/Leafa_

 _A Few Minutes Earlier – Kazuto's House_

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the poster on my ceiling of Leafa from ALfheim Online, the new VRMMORPG for the AmuSphere. Leafa was the name of my avatar in the game. I knew that Kazuto's life was endangered by a VRMMO, but my classmate Nagata Shinichi recommended the game to me within the first month of the open beta. The game had only been out for about three or four months now, so it's not like I'd been playing for that long.

Shinichi and I played as Sylphs, one of the game's major races and while I took the name of Leafa, he called himself Recon. Even though I've only been playing for about two and a half months now, I was somewhat popular among the Sylph race. As for the poster of my avatar, I got that from a screenshot, zoomed in as much as it would allow me. I took off the AmuSphere, laid it beside me and just laid there for a little bit.

 _If you want, I'll take you there!_

Those were the words that I had said to that Kirito guy and his friend, Klein. And they were still ringing in my head.

 _What was I doing? What was I thinking?_

I flipped over onto my side as I remained on my bed.

"Talk about weird... Both of them!" I muttered to myself. "Kirito, huh? What if it's really..."

 _No, don't think like that! It's not him, it can't be! He told me himself that he's not the real thing!_

I sat up on my bed and just sat there for a few seconds. I finally sighed and got up off my bed.

 _I have to know,_ I thought.

I opened my door, left my room and walked just down the hall to the door to Kazuto's room. I reached to open the door but stopped myself.

 _I should at least knock first._

I knocked on his door and waited for a response. I never got one.

 _He's probably just taking a nap. Yeah, that's it!_

I finally decided to give up and go do something while I waited for him to wake up.

 _Kirito_

 _Sylph Territory – Sylvain_

Once Klein and I had parted ways, I retired to my Inn room so I could log out. One of the ways that ALO's system worked is that if you fell asleep while in game, the system would detect this and automatically log you out. As I was lying in bed, waiting to fall asleep, Yui flew over to the edge of the bed and returned to her normal height, her wings shrinking out of sight.

"I guess this means goodbye till tomorrow, doesn't it?" she asked.

"Yeah, but I'll be back soon." I said with a smile on my face. "It won't be that long, so there's no need for you to worry."

Yui looked back at me with a smile on her face, her eyes sparkling. Eventually her smile disappeared, and she looked as though she was unsure about something.

"Daddy," she finally spoke. "Would it be alright if I slept next to you? Just until you log out?"

"Yeah, sure. I don't mind."

Yui smiled and let out a brief gasp of joy before wasting no time in laying down next to me. As we laid there staring at each other, I spoke up.

"You, me and Klein, we're going to save Asuna. Then we'll all go buy a house somewhere, just like old times."

"That would make me so happy. You know, living with you and Mommy again would be a dream come true!"

I gently put my hand on her shoulder, slightly surprising her.

"It's not a dream. I'll make it real, Yui. I promise."

She smiled at me once more and nodded as she shut her eyes.

"Good night, Daddy." She eventually spoke one last time before falling asleep.

 _Sometime Later – Kazuto's House_

I eventually woke up on my bed, back in real life. Once I sat up and removed the NerveGear, I left my room. I walked the short distance to Sugu's room, to find the door open and the room empty. I walked down the hall and down the stairs, toward the living room. I walked into the living room to see Sugu sitting by herself on the couch, as I stretched and let out a yawn.

"Hey, Sugu." I replied as I yawned.

"Hey, Kazuto. Where have you been?"

"I was taking a nap." I lied. "I was tired after we went to go see Agil. We also checked in on Sachi. I just needed some sleep."

I felt bad about lying to Sugu, but I just couldn't bring myself to tell her the truth.

"What did Agil want to see you guys for?"

"Oh, he just wanted to talk about that new VRMMO that's out. Nothing too exciting."

"ALO? What about it?"

I shrugged.

"I don't know. He thought that I might want to try it."

"Are you going to?"

I shook my head.

"I thought I told you that I'm done with that stuff, Sugu?"

"Is there really no way for you to ever try it again?"

"After everything that we went through during SAO, I just can't Sugu. I don't think I'll ever be able to beat the trauma to play another VRMMO."

She eventually sighed.

"Well, if that's the best I'll get from you."

"Yeah. Sorry, Sugu."

She shrugged. Both of us were silent now.

"Well, it's getting late." She eventually spoke as she got up from the couch. "Since Mom is having a late night _again_ , I should get started on dinner."

She then walked out of the room and to the kitchen, leaving me alone for the time being.

 _Half An Hour Later_

After dinner, I returned to my room to put my NerveGear back on the shelf before going to sleep. Once I moved to the shelf with my NerveGear in hand, I looked at my phone on my desk, to see that I had three missed calls. Once I placed the NerveGear back on the shelf, I walked back to my desk. Once I picked up my phone and activated the screen, I saw that the three calls were all from Klein. I let out a sigh as I dialed his number.

"It's about time you got back to me!" he said once he picked up.

"Dude, you need to calm down." I replied. "What is so important for you to call me three times?"

"I was going to mention something to you while you were still in ALO, but I forgot to, and I logged out before I had the chance. It's important, Kiri-Dude!"

I sighed.

"Well, what is it then?"

"Leafa mentioned the name "The Fairy King Oberon". Does that ring a bell?"

"Yeah, of course. That's the name that Sachi mentioned when she told us about the guys that tried to take her."

"Right. So, let me ask you: Do you think Oberon and "The Fairy King Oberon" are connected?"

I sighed.

"Well, my gut screams yes, but my mind screams no."

"What do you mean?"

"It wouldn't surprise me if they're somehow linked, but I also think that it may be a tad coincidental. We need to think on this just a little longer. We don't want to jump to a conclusion that we'll regret later."

"Yeah, you're probably right. We might want to look further into this."

"Okay, then. Is there anything else?"

"No, I don't think so."

"Okay. Well, if you don't mind, I'm tired and I want to get some sleep. So, I'll talk to you later."

"Okay, dude. Well, I'll talk to you later then."

"Yep."

I hung up after that and shut off the lights in my room. I put my phone back on my desk and laid down on the bed. And after that, sleep came to me in no time.

 _Asuna_

 _Alne, The World Tree – The Floating City, The Birdcage_

I sat in a chair, in front of a clear glass table, where several birds had come to rest on. I slowly reached out to try and touch them, but they flew away before my hand could even get close. I let out a sigh of disappointment as I continued to sit there. I was in a birdcage, at the top of a very tall tree. It seemed like it was only yesterday that my world got flipped upside down.

I was walking home after a date with Kirito, when suddenly I felt a sting in my upper back and shortly after, everything went black. When I came to, I was in this birdcage which had a cold floor and only a few pieces of furniture, the bed and table included. I was also wearing a traditional white wedding dress, with a veil on my head that couldn't be removed no matter how hard I tried, and I always had no shoes or socks on my feet.

"Right now, your face is more beautiful than anything, Titania." A male voice said from behind me. "The way you look like you're about to cry. I wish I could preserve it and hang it up on a wall."

I sat up straighter with frustration at the sound of that voice. The voice belonged to "The Fairy King Oberon", which was just an alias for my ex-boyfriend, Sugou Nobuyuki. But just like everything else, people have souls. And souls don't change with the name. I hated Sugou. I hated everything about him.

He was a friend of the family, my father used to view him as the son he never had. He liked Sugou so much that he eventually arranged for us to be married. Obviously, we never got married. Eventually, he saw how much I hated Sugou and he called it off. I don't think Sugou ever got over it, as he was practically obsessed with me.

So, I wasn't exactly surprised when I found out that it was him who had abducted me, which was almost immediately. Here I was, trapped inside of another VRMMO, called ALfheim Online. I think that some of the game had its roots in Norse Mythology, but I really wasn't sure. All I knew is that Sugou built up this world so that he was a "Fairy King" and I was his Queen, his bride.

And in this world, I was called "Titania", that's the name he gave me. Meanwhile in the real world, my real body was probably lying in a bed somewhere and I was most likely missing, my friends and family having no idea where I had gone. And there was nothing that I could do, seeing as I was locked 24/7 in this birdcage.

"What are you waiting for?" I asked with a monotone voice. "Permission?"

I turned with a cold gaze in my eyes, looking at him standing on the other side of the cage door. The door opened and he slowly began to walk inside, until he stood next to me. In the world of the game, we wore a dark green cloak, had white sleeves, sandals, two sets of translucent green wings and long blonde hair, as well as a crown of some sort on his head. I looked away from his as he approached.

"You can do whatever you want. I have no say in the matter. You're the system admin, after all."

Sugou or should I say, _Oberon_ put his hand on the table and leaned down to look at me.

"Such cold words from such a pretty mouth. Now, have I ever laid a hand on you when you didn't want me to, Titania?"

I gritted my teeth as I looked up at him.

"Stop calling me that, Sugou! My name is Asuna! And how did you capture me? Why has no one found me yet?!"

He just smiled down at me, unphased. Eventually he sighed and stood up straight as he shut his eyes. He eventually opened his eyes as he began speaking.

"Are you really still hung up on that? You shouldn't worry yourself with the fact that no one's found you yet. You're ruining the fun of it all! You've come to have a greater purpose!"

"You mean pretending that we're married and you're keeping me in a birdcage while you live in a gigantic castle..."

"In this world, I'm known as Oberon The Fairy King!" he interrupted me. "There's not a player that wouldn't give everything to have what I have! You are Queen Titania, my bride and if I didn't keep you in a cage, you'd try to run away from me, and I can't have that!"

I said nothing.

"Is it not enough for you?" he eventually asked. "As my Queen, is it too much to ask that you open your heart?"

I turned to look at him with a deadly glare.

"Never. I never loved you, Sugou! The only things I'll ever give you are disgust and hatred!"

He looked down at me.

"For the last time, it's Oberon! Oberon The Fairy King!"

I ignored him. He eventually sighed,

"You're a stubborn girl, I'll say that. But you know, for a while now, romance is nice and all..."

He reached toward me and I turned my head away, but he grabbed my chin anyway. He forced me to look at him once more.

"...But it might be more fun, if I take you by force."

He let go of me and stared down at me for a few seconds, before he reached for my face. I wasn't letting him touch me again. As soon as his hand got close enough to my face, I quickly leaned forward and bit down on his hand.

"Agh!" he exclaimed with surprise. "Let go!"

Eventually, he was able to pull away from me and afterwards, he just stood there, staring at me with surprise. His gaze eventually softened.

"Oh, that's alright. You'll come around eventually."

I flashed him an angry look, flames arcing in my eyes.

"I'll never come around!" I hissed through gritted teeth. "I will never love you nor will I ever even like you!"

He just sighed as he paced a few steps away from the table.

"Okay, I shall leave you now then. You say that you'll never come around, but we both know that that's not true." He spoke, before turning to look at me. "You'll start wanting me soon enough, I promise you."

I kept my eyes on him.

"In your dreams." I muttered.

"You won't be talking like that for much longer." He replied as he walked to the edge of the cage.

He just stood there, looking out at the world beyond the cage bars.

"Right now, in this world, there are tens of thousands of players that are enjoying this game. But none of them have a clue about the true potential of FullDive system."

"Don't you think you're being a little too cocky, Sugou?"

He ignored the fact that I said his real name.

"You know by expanding the brain's control regions, one could influence a person's thoughts, emotions and even their memories."

I let out a small gasp of surprise.

 _Is that what he meant by me not wanting him for much longer? Would he actually manipulate my brain to make me love him? No, that's crazy! He may be cruel, but he's not that cruel!_

He turned his head just slightly, so he was looking at me from his peripheral vision. I could tell that he had a sinister smile on his face.

"But, that's illegal!" I exclaimed.

"Oh, but you're wrong. In fact, several countries are already researching it as we speak. The only thing standing in the way is finding people to experiment on. And one day, many months ago, I was watching the news and there they were. Six thousand, one hundred and forty nine ideal guinea pigs!"

That number struck me.

 _What made it so familiar?_

Then it hit me.

 _That was the final registered number of survivors following the SAO Incident!_

"Mr. Kayaba was a genius, but he was also a fool. He was using the FullDive system the wrong way! It was all a game to him! He never saw the potential of his technology! But I did."

He turned to look at me, unsurprisingly with a sinister grin on his face.

"Which is why I decided to intervene and make sure that the rights for the leftover resources from SAO would go to me and my division, RECT Progress!"

I looked at him with shock.

 _Who am I kidding? This isn't the Sugou I remember! He's not cruel! He's evil!_

"My research has paid off over the last few months. I've been developing a new technology that seeds memories with objects and uses them to control emotions. My work has been ongoing for months now and I'm making great progress. I will finish my work!"

I looked down at the floor.

"You're insane. That kind of research can't be allowed!"

Sugou walked behind me and leaned over my shoulder, so his lips barely touched my ear.

"It would be if people knew about it. It's being done in secret, with a small team in a secure location. I have to have help if people are going to be interested in it."

I shuddered.

"People are interested in it?"

"A private American corporation seems interested, but we're still negotiating."

I couldn't believe this.

"If it goes through, I'll sell it and RECT to them for as much as I can."

"That can't happen."

He walked in front of me once more and quickly took hold of my chin before I could react.

"You don't have a say in it, little girl."

He looked at me before speaking again.

"You're in the same boat as the rest of the victims. I could alter your memories if I really wanted to, but what I really want is to really have you!"

He let go of my chin and backed away from me. Just then, a notification popped up for him. He looked at it with annoyance.

"I'll be right there. Wait for my orders." He replied, before waving it away.

He looked back at me.

"Don't worry. The last thing I'd ever do to you is turn you into a porcelain doll."

It wasn't long until the sinister grin returned to his face.

"I just want you to know that for the last month, I've had former SAO survivors kidnapped so I can use the power of their brains to increase my influence over this realm. And I'm almost up to fifty. How's that for insane?"

I just stared up at him with shock.

"So, this game was never in a beta? It's a full release? Was it ever real?"

He chuckled.

"Clever girl! No, this game was never in beta. That's just a cover story for a more sensitive... topic."

I continued to stare at him.

"Please, tell me you haven't gotten to any of my friends!"

He chuckled.

"No, of course not. I haven't had any of them kidnapped." He said, before flashing a sinister look my way. "Except for one Ayano Keiko."

I felt my face go pale.

 _That was Silica's real name!_

"Seeing as you're pretty shocked about that, I'll leave you to think about that." He said as he stroked my cheek. "Ta-Ta."

I didn't even register that he had touched me. I turned as I watched him go, having a smile on his face as he went. He began typing numbers into the holo-keyboard of numbers and I tried to focus, but my vision was blurred. He turned to face me as the door opened.

"Farewell, my love!"

He then turned and left, the door shutting behind him. I got up from the table and moved towards the bars of the cage. I wanted to cry or scream, but nothing came out. I took hold of one of the bars and clutched it so hard that my knuckles turned white. I shut my eyes as I contemplated my situation.

 _Kirito will come for me! I just know it!_

 _Author's Note:_

* And there it is, at long last, Chapter Twenty is finished! I hope you all enjoyed!

* Sorry this one took a while. Hopefully the next chapter won't take so long to get out.

* I want to bring up a few things before I get to review responses. So, here I go. I never got a response about whether or not I should include scenes from Sugu's point of view. I think they are vital to the story, some of them anyway. So, if you have a problem with me doing this, I guess I don't know what to say.

* Also, yes, I know. Leafa/Sugu should know that this is Kirito and Klein are the real thing, that she knows them in real life. And honestly, I think it's ridiculous that they don't find out about each other's identities until late into Fairy Dance. Surely, Sugu would have known about the name that Kazuto used while in SAO.

* It's absurd that Sugu doesn't even recognize her brother's voice while in ALO. But I think that a small part of it is good for plot, so I'm keeping it here. And now I want to bring up how I completely changed the kind of dress that Asuna wears. I just never liked the dress that she wears in the Anime. It was too revealing, and I hated that. So, I changed it. I hope that there aren't any problems with that.

* I think that's all I have. Let me know, if you think I left anything out or if you have something you want to ask me. So, I think I'm going to go though. So, have a fantastic day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _themasternat (Chapter 19): i hope that klein use nerve gear and sachi will come with us too probably agil silicia and lisbeth would come too_

Thanks, Nat. Klein is already helping Kirito in ALO. Silica may not be happy out, as you could have inferred from this chapter. As for Sachi, Agil and Lisbeth, they may eventually join. We'll just have to wait and see. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kazuto continues to feel lonely in Asuna's absence. Leafa causes trouble when she leaves her party to form a group with Klein, Kirito and Yui.


	21. Chapter 21: To The World Tree

Chapter 21: To The World Tree

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty One!

* So, before I even get to anything, I want to say something. I plan on rebooting this story, at some point. However, you don't have to worry about this iteration, because the reboot won't come until the distant future. Maybe three or even four years from now. Even though I'm proud of this story, I feel like I did something wrong that Reki Kawahara did as well. In my adaptation of Aincrad, it consisted mostly of the second year of the incident.

* I want to try and tell as much of the story as I can, without so many gaps in the timeline. So, when I go for the reboot, I'll be changing some things, as well as trying my best not to leave anything out. That's my plan.

* I don't think I have anything else. With that said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House – March 14_ _th_ _, 2025_

When I woke up, the first thing I saw Asuna sitting at the foot of my bed. I yawned as I sat up and rubbed my eyes.

"I thought you were going to go home?" I asked.

"Well, I was going to, but I couldn't help but think about how cute you look while you sleep!" she said with a smile on her face. "So, I decided to stay!"

"What time is it, anyway?"

"About seven o'clock."

I let out a sigh as I tried to sit up. She immediately moved over to my spot on the bed.

"No, no. You need to get some more sleep." She said as she began to push me down. "You still look tired, so it wouldn't hurt to get a little bit more of sleep."

As she did that, I pulled her down with me as she gasped in response. I was now lying back down, with her on top of me as I held her hands in mine. She looked down at me with a small red blush on her cheeks.

"Stay with me. Stay the night with me. Please?"

She continued to stare down at me with a blush, before she smiled down at me.

"You'd know I'd like to, Kirito. But if I did, my father would never let me leave the house again."

"Please?"

She stared down at me, before lowering herself and kissing me. Once we pulled away from the kiss, I stared up at her with a smile on my face, while she did the same.

"Does that mean yes?" I asked hopefully.

She shook her head with a sad look in her eyes.

"I told you Kirito, I can't. My Dad would ground me come morning if he found that I stayed here overnight instead of coming home."

I let out a sigh.

"And I guess I need to understand that."

She gave me a look of sympathy, before lowering herself once more to kiss my forehead.

"Don't be sad, Kirito. It's not like I'm going anywhere. You'll see me again!"

She got off the bed as I watched her go. She flashed me a smile as she headed to the door.

"Bye, Kirito! No more depriving yourself of sleep, okay?"

I waved at her as she left the room.

"Bye." I mumbled.

 _Kazuto's House – December 8_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Eight Days Remaining_

I was sitting up in my bed after I had woken up.

 _Why now, of all times did I have to have that dream?_

I had dreamed about that day several months ago, when Asuna had agreed to stay with me until I fell asleep. And when I woke up, she had still been there. I had begged her to stay with me, but she insisted that she had to go home.

 _But why did I have that dream now? Did it have something to do with the fact that it seemed like Asuna was here yesterday and now, she's just gone?_

I let out a sigh, unsure of what to think.

 _Suguha_

 _Sometime Later_

I began thinking to myself as I walked to school.

 _I want to see what virtual reality's like. When did I first think that?_

I flashed back to a time when Kazuto was still wasting away in a coma during the SAO Incident.

 _Back then, I hated virtual reality games with a vengeance. And I blamed them for stealing my brother away from me. But later on, thanks to Nagata, I got curious. I never knew why my brother loved them so much, so eventually I thought maybe I should see why for myself. I didn't know what to expect at first._

 _But after a while, I was surprised by how much I had come to love ALfheim Online. It was amazing! Flying through the sky on my very own wings! To fly as far was I wanted, as high as I wanted, as fast as I wanted! I'd give anything and everything for that! I think I get it now. I can see why my brother loved the virtual world._

I had been so focused on my thoughts that I eventually realized I had made it to school faster that I thought. I was walking past one of the buildings, when all of a sudden, a boy in a long brown jacket over a black school uniform jumped out from behind the wall. He was also wearing round lensed glasses. The boy was Nagata Shinichi, one of my friends from school. He was also known as Recon within ALO.

"Hold it, Leafa!" he exclaimed.

I let out an annoyed sigh as I stared at him.

"Nagata, how many times have I told you not to call me that at school?" I asked in annoyance.

He looked down at the ground with shame. As I looked at him, I imagined his in-game counterpart. They both looked nearly identical, besides the fact that Recon didn't wear those round glasses.

"Sorry, Suguha." he mumbled.

My face flushed as he said my first name.

"Why you idiot!" I exclaimed as I reached for the case slung over my shoulder, which carried my practice kendo bamboo sword.

I was about to swing at him with it, when he got on his knees and put up his hands, cowering with fear.

"I'm sorry, _Kirigaya-San_!" he exclaimed.

I looked at him, as I withdrew my sword case, hissing with annoyance as I did.

"What do you want?" I asked, still carrying an annoyed tone.

That's when I realized he _here_ , at the school.

"Wait, what are you even doing here?" I spoke once more. "You got a release from taking the high school entrance exams. They're not making you come anyway, are they?"

"Sugu..."

I let out a growl, as I reached for my sword case again.

"Kirigaya-San, I need to talk to you! So, I've been waiting all morning!"

I retracted my hand once more. He stood up straighter as he straightened his glasses.

"Wait, you're not here for the exams too, are you?"

I shook my head.

"No, the advisor for the Kendo Club asked me to come in, that's all. Well, what's up?"

"It's Sigurd and the others," he said with a serious tone, still adjusting his glasses. "They all wanted to go hunting again this afternoon."

I shrugged.

"Sorry, I won't be going out with those guys for a while."

He looked back at me with surprise.

"Wait, what? Why not?"

"I've got plans to head over to Arun, that's why."

"But Arun is at the base of The World Tree, right? Isn't that the Capital? Why do you need to go to the Capital?"

"I don't need to go to the Capital. The Spriggan and the Salamander I met yesterday need to get there."

He looked suspicious and sort of angry now.

"Wait, a second! You're going with that Spriggan? What's his business in Arun?"

"I don't have to explain anything to you, Nagata! I just promised them I'd show them the way!"

"But have you thought about what you're doing, Lea..."

I let out another growl of warning. He backed up with a whimper of fear, before clearing his throat.

"Kirigaya-San, it's just so far away and you don't know them, and..."

"It's none of your business! I've made up my mind and that's that! Say hey to Sigurd and the others for me."

I ran past him as I waved over my shoulder.

"See you later!"

 _Kazuto's House – A Few Hours Later_

Once I got home that day, I took off my school uniform and just put on a T-shirt and nothing else. I grabbed the AmuSphere from my headboard, ready to get started for the day. I laid down as I put it on, staring up at the poster on my ceiling as I did. I took a breath as a small smile appeared on my face.

"Link start!"

 _Kirito_

 _Sylvain, Sylph Territory – A Few Minutes Earlier_

Klein and I had been waiting downstairs in the café for the past couple minutes, waiting for Leafa to arrive.

"Why does she have to be late?" Klein complained next to me.

"Calm down, she'll be here." I replied.

Eventually the door to the café opened and Leafa walked in. Once she saw us, she smiled.

"Hey, you guys!" she greeted us. "Have you been waiting long?"

"Yes." Klein immediately answered.

Leafa looked confused as I sighed.

"Don't mind him, he's just impatient. We haven't been waiting for that long."

"Well, sorry if I kept you waiting at all. I was out buying some gear, that's all."

When she mentioned shopping, it hit me.

"Oh, yeah. Klein and I should probably update our equipment, too."

"I thought you weren't going to be playing for long?" he asked.

"Well, if we're going to get anywhere, I may need better equipment to handle higher level enemies, should we run into them."

I turned and patted the simple starter sword that rested on my back.

"I don't think this is going to be enough."

I turned back to Leafa, to see that the smile on her face remained.

"Okay, I know a good weapon shop near here. Do you guys have enough money? They're not cheap!"

I swiped down with my left hand and opened my inventory. I scanned until I saw something that seemed like it would be money.

"Okay, money. Is this stuff called "Yuld" money?"

"Uh-huh."

I made a frustrated face as I continued to stare at my inventory. Leafa let out a confused grunt, but before she could say anything, I grabbed my coat pocket and began to shake it.

"Hey, Yui? We're heading out now." I replied. "It's time to wake up."

A few seconds later, Yui popped her head out of my pocket, back in her pixie form and yawned as she stretched.

"Okay."

 _Sometime Later_

Eventually after some time had passed, Leafa, Klein and I stopped off at a weapons dealer to chat with an NPC salesman. Klein had decided that he was going to buy a better katana for himself. I ended up buying a new sword as well. It was much bigger than the swords I was used to using, but it would do nicely. As I fastened it onto my back with one hand, I heard Leafa let out a confused grunt. I turned to look at her with a confused look.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

She shook her head.

"No, everything's fine. You just remind me of someone I know."

I was going to ask who, but that would seem impolite.

"Well, if you two are done, I can show you around the city before we have to leave."

Klein and I agreed to it and we were off. After maybe half an hour, we eventually stopped at a tower.

"Why are we coming here?" I asked.

"Well, we have to fly a long distance." Leafa replied.

"We can't just head out of town and start from there?" Klein chimed in.

Leafa turned to look at him with an annoyed expression.

"God, you really don't know anything, do you?"

Klein looked back at her with an angry expression now.

"Hey, that's not true! I know... stuff!"

I chuckled.

"Wow, Klein! That's a great come back!"

He turned to look at me.

"Come on, dude! You know I don't do well under pressure!"

I laughed once more.

"What pressure? There's no pressure in this situation!"

Before he could say anything else, I heard Leafa clear her throat. I turned to face her, as well as Klein.

"Do you two mind? I'd like to head out sometime this year."

"Oh, right. Sorry."

She turned back to the tower that we stood in front of.

"Anyway, when flying long distances, it's better to start at a higher altitude. That's what the tower's here for."

"Huh." Klein muttered.

"Yeah, that makes sense." I chimed in.

I put my fingers to my chin as I stared up at the tower. I don't know why, but it looked familiar. I was having a major sense of déjà vu right now. All of a sudden, Leafa pushed me from behind.

"Come on, let's go! I want to get past the forest before dark!"

"Hey, my legs work just fine!"

Klein laughed from behind.

"That's not what it looks like from where I'm standing!"

"Shut up!"

 _Five Minutes Later_

It took us five minutes to climb up the tower's flights of stairs. I took the time to look around at the several shops that they had up here. Before I could get my bearings, Leafa walked forward and grabbed my hand.

"This way, slowpokes."

She pulled me forward, as Klein followed behind me. We hadn't even walked three feet before someone said her name.

"Leafa."

We stopped walking and as we did, I turned to see three Sylphs approaching us. One was taller than the other two, had long green hair and wore a dark green cloak of some kind. The other two wore standard Sylph gear, I guess? Well, both of them wore blue headbands, although one of them was fancier than the other.

"Oh, hey Sigurd." Leafa was the first to speak.

I turned to face them as well now.

 _So, this is the Sigurd that I've heard so much about. Well, let's see what he has to say._

"What's this I hear about you leaving the party?" he asked in an emotionless voice.

"I'm already getting bad vibes off of this guy." Klein whispered to me.

I nodded.

"I was thinking the same thing." I whispered back.

Sigurd looked at us, but said nothing.

"Well?" he asked as he turned back to Leafa. "Is that true?"

"Well, yeah it is." She replied.

"Do you have any idea how much that's going to upset the other members?"

"You said it wouldn't be a problem if I joined only when I had the time! You also said I could quit whenever I wanted to!"

"You gonna say something, Kiri-Dude?" Klein whispered.

"Give it some time. I'll step in this guy really needs to be put in his place."

"Yes, I know what I said." Sigurd continued. "But you've been with us for a while now, everyone knows you. If you leave us, it's going to damage the reputation of the party!"

It was at that moment that I realized exactly what type of person this guy was.

 _Okay, yeah. I'm stepping in._

I stepped up to him with an angered look on my face.

"Party members aren't items. I learned that a long time ago."

Sigurd gave me a hateful look.

"My friend, I don't believe that I was speaking to you."

"Kirito, back down!" Leafa urged me.

I ignored both of them. I stepped closer and put my hand around Sigurd's throat, surprising everyone. Immediately the other two Sylphs that had been at Sigurd's side were now on either side of me, with their weapons drawn and pointed at my throat.

"Back off, you piece of Spriggan trash!" one of them exclaimed.

I just merely looked at them with a smile.

"Relax, I mean him no harm." I said, before turning back to Sigurd with a serious look on my face. "I can't stress this enough, but I know your kind Sigurd."

"My kind?"

"I know what kind of person you are. I've seen your kind all too many times. You make yourself look like the most important person in the room. You view everyone else as expendable, you just use people for your own gains, while not really doing much yourself."

Sigurd looked at me with a glare still.

"Watch your tongue, kid!"

I just smirked once more.

"Oh, don't stop me. I'm not done yet. Party members are not items, Sigurd. Don't expect them to be on call just for you. You don't get to rely on them or rather, you don't get to use them for your benefits. So, Leafa is coming with me and my friend. I'd offer you can fight me for her, but I'd probably kick your ass."

I then pushed Sigurd backwards a few feet. One of his eyes just twitched as he stared at me.

"Why you insolent punk!" he exclaimed as he ran forward.

I quickly sidestepped and avoided his charge. Once Sigurd had recovered from his charge, he turned and unsheathed his sword.

"That mouth of yours is probably what got you exiled from your territory, isn't it? Well, then, let's see what you got!"

Before he could attack, Leafa spoke up.

"Enough! Kirito is my new partner and I won't allow you to hurt him or his friend! I'm going with them and there's nothing you can do about it!"

Sigurd looked at Leafa with disbelief.

"What?" he asked at last.

Once he recovered from the shock of it, an angered look came to his face.

"You're abandoning us? To be a renegade like them?!"

Leafa looked offended, but she spoke again regardless.

"Yes, I am! And I'm never coming back!"

That didn't help Sigurd's attitude, as he approached her with his sword in hand. No, not her, me!

"I don't give a damn about you two buzzing around my party member, but if you think you can just steal her, then that's another story!"

Klein cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Hey, man. We're not stealing her from you. If we were, you'd have to own her first. And you don't. Huge difference."

Sigurd's face was beginning to grow red.

"Watch your tongue!" he said, before turning back to me. "As for you, if you have the guts to enter other race's territories and talk as if you own the place, then it's your own damn fault if you get yourself killed!"

I just rolled my eyes, which just made him more annoyed. One of the Sylphs that he had with him spoke up after a few seconds.

"Sigurd, this isn't the time or place for this! If we get these guys in front of all these people, we're gonna look bad!"

A look of surprise went over Sigurd's face as he said that, and I had the same reaction.

 _Was this guys seriously thinking about PKing Klein and I?_

As he looked around, I did the same and saw that we had attracted the attention of all the other players in the area. Sigurd looked at them and then back at me, narrowing his eyes as he did. He finally sheathed his sword once more and stood up straight again.

"Once you cross our border, you better run and hide, Leafa." He replied in a calm, but threatening voice. "I never expected you to betray me like this."

I gritted my teeth with anger in response. He took one step closer to us.

"You will regret this, I promise."

He then swiftly turned and walking away before anyone could say a word, the other two Sylphs following him as we went. Once they were gone, I heard Leafa let out a sigh. I turned to look at them with a smile on my face.

"Still got it!" I replied.

Klein stepped forward, also with a smile on his face.

"I know dude, that was awesome!" he replied as we high fived each other. "We sure showed him!"

I snickered.

"What do you mean "we"?"

His face turned a bit pink as he looked back at me.

"Oh." He eventually muttered.

"Hey, Kirito?" Leafa asked.

I turned to look at her.

"Hmm?" I grunted.

She seemed slightly embarrassed, staring down at the ground as she clutched her hands together in front of her stomach.

"I'm really sorry that you had to get dragged into all of that just now."

I chuckled as I lightly tousled her hair.

"Don't worry, Leafa." I replied. "I don't mind it."

Leafa blushed as she looked back at me. Before either of us could say anything, Yui popped out of my pocket.

"Yui? What's the matter?" I asked.

"You can't do that! You belong to Mommy!" she exclaimed.

I let out a sigh.

 _Not this again._

"Oh, come on, Yui! I was just being friendly!"

"No!"

I finally let out a sigh, before plucking her from the air and dropping her back into my coat pocket.

 _Why does she make me do this?_

Once Yui was out of sight and out of mind, I turned back to Leafa.

"I'm sorry about that. Yui's very sensitive."

Leafa just looked at me with suspicion.

"What's up with her?" she eventually asked. "And who is this "Mommy" person that she keeps referring to?"

"I can't tell you that right now. Work with us enough and allow my trust in you to continue building up and I'll consider telling you."

She continued looking at me with a suspicious glance but eventually sighed.

"Okay. Anyway, are you sure that this is a good idea? Abandoning your territory?"

"Yeah, won't that cause problems between you and your race in the future?" Klein chimed in.

She didn't say anything. She just began walking forward, away from us. Klein and I exchanged glances and shrugged, not seeing anything else to do but follow her. After a few more minutes, we finally reached the top of the tower, which was exposed to the sky.

"Wow." I said at last, admiring the view in front of us.

"That is one amazing view." Klein replied as well.

"I know." Leafa replied. "The sky's so close that you feel like you could touch it, right?"

I nodded, having nothing to say as I stared in awe.

"Whenever I look up there, everything else feels so small." She said as she reached out to the sky, before retracting her arm. "The timing couldn't have been any better. I've been thinking about leaving here for a couple weeks now."

"Yeah, but I feel like this is my fault. You know, leaving on bad terms with those guys?"

She chuckled.

"Yeah, well I don't think it could have happened any other way."

"Hey, there's one thing that's troubling me." Klein chimed in. "Sigurd used the word "renegade", that's what he called us."

"Yeah, I also thought about that. What does it mean?"

"A renegade is a player who abandons their territory. If you get branded as one, everyone's gonna look down on you."

"Are you really okay with that?" he asked.

She shrugged.

"I don't really care. But I don't understand why everybody is so quick to tie each other down like that. I mean, what's the point in having wings, you know?"

As I stared at her, Yui once again escaped from my pocket.

"You humans are so complicated. Seriously, your psychology is so confusing!" She replied as she came to sit down on my shoulder. "Why do you act so horribly to each other when all you want is companionship?"

Leafa turned around to look at the Pixie sitting on my shoulder. I thought she was going to ask me about Yui's background again, but she didn't.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"If it were me," she stopped to stand up and lightly kiss my cheek. "I'd do that! It's simple, straightforward and efficient!"

I let out a sigh.

Now Leafa really was going to question Yui.

"Uh, that's an amazing AI. Do all Private Pixies act like that, or just yours?"

I had said that I wasn't going to tell her anything, but maybe there was something I _could_ say.

"No, just mine." I said as I plucked Yui from my shoulder. "But she's a weirdo, so..."

Yui let out a desperate mumble as I dropped her back in my coat pocket.

"I guess you would know, huh?" Leafa continued. "All we want is companionship... huh."

As we stood there, we heard someone wailing from behind us.

"Leafa!"

We all turned to see a familiar Sylph player coming out of the elevator; it was Recon.

"Hey, Recon." She was the first to speak.

"How could you do this?!" he wailed once more as he began running towards us. "You could have said something before you left!"

"Oh, sorry." She replied with a chuckle. "I guess I forgot."

Recon hung his head and slumped forward with a groan.

"Why'd you quit the party all of a sudden like that?" he asked as he looked up.

Leafa put her finger to her chin.

"Well, I didn't really think too hard about it. I just did it, you know? What are you going to do, though?"

Recon stood up straight.

"As if, Leafa!" he said as he drew his dagger and pointed it skyward. "It doesn't matter where you go, my sword belongs to you and you alone!"

Klein and I cleared our throats, both of us obviously knowing what that meant.

"Thanks, but I don't think I'll need it." she replied in return.

Recon slumped down again as he sheathed his dagger with another groan. He looked up at her.

"What I meant by that was, I'm gonna go with you! Wherever."

Klein and I exchanged glances and shrugged, neither of us saying anything.

"That is, I'd like to go, but there's been something that's bugging me."

"What is it?" Leafa asked.

"I can't really prove anything yet, but there are few things I want to look more into, so I'm going to stay in Sigurd's party a while longer."

He then looked up at me.

"Hey, Kirito?"

I was actually surprised that he remembered my name.

"Yeah?"

"She has a habit of getting herself in trouble, so be careful. I'd appreciate if you and your friend kept an eye on her."

I smiled back at him.

"Consider it done."

"And just to make sure we're clear, Leafa is my..."

Before he could finish his sentence, the girl in question stomped on his foot.

"Ow!" he wailed with pain.

"We'll be in the neutral zone for a while." She said with her arms crossed over her chest. "Message me if you need anything."

She turned and walked towards the edge of the tower, her green wings appearing on her back as she walked.

"Come on, man." Klein replied. "I guess we're leaving. We gotta catch up before she leaves us in the dust."

I nodded and followed Klein as he walked in Leafa's direction. Our wings appeared on our backs as well and we lifted off, catching up with her in a matter of seconds. Once we got up, I felt the urge to start a conversation.

"You said you knew him in real life? Your friend, right?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"Mmm-Hmm." Klein chimed in.

"Okay, what's that weird noise supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, he just thinks it's nice to hear." I replied for Klein.

As we flew, Yui popped her head out of my coat pocket.

"Now, I can understand _his_ feelings. He must like you a lot, wouldn't you say, Leafa? Do you feel the same way about him?"

Leafa gasped.

"Uh, I don't know! Jeez!"

With that and a burst of speed, Leafa flew forward leaving us behind. As she flew, she eventually looked back at us. Once she saw us, she smiled.

"Come on, you guys! I want to try to at least make it to the lake before we have to stop!"

"Okay." I said in response.

"We can do that." Klein chimed in.

We continued flying further, nothing but streams, fields of green and mountains ahead of us.

 _Asuna_

 _Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City, The Birdcage_

I felt an uncomfortable sensation travel up and down my spine as Sugou caressed my arm with his fingers. I bit my lip, trying my best not to whimper with disgust. I would not allow him to have the thought that this was pleasuring me. Nevertheless, I heard him chuckle. He began to reach for my chest and I immediately swatted his hand away. He finally heaved a frustrated sigh.

"Unbelievable." He said as he fell back onto the bed. "Why do you have to be so stubborn with me?"

I didn't answer him.

"No matter what I do, I can't hurt you. It's not like the body you have right now is real. Come on, enjoy yourself a little, Titania!"

I shuddered when he called me that.

"I won't enjoy myself. I'll be getting out of here soon, you'll see. I don't belong to you, but I don't expect you to understand."

"You are in no position to say such things to me, Titania."

"I told you not to call me that! My name is Asuna, not..."

"Shut up."

I ignored what he said.

"It doesn't matter to me. Whether my body is real or virtual, I don't belong to you, nor do I belong with you. And I don't expect you to see that way."

"Are you scared that you're going to be corrupted somehow?" he asked, ignoring most of what I said.

When I said nothing in return, which caused him to giggle.

"If that's the case, you definitely need to take things a little less seriously while you're here."

"Well, I'm not planning on staying in this cage forever."

"I believe you're forgetting that you don't have a choice."

I ignored him again.

"You'll see. He'll come save me."

"Really? Who will? That hero boyfriend of yours? Let me know if I'm getting this right. Avatar name: Kirito, real name: Kazuto Kirigaya, right?"

I turned to look at him with shock.

 _How did he know about Kirito?!_

He moved and sat up on the edge of the bed.

"Please. You really think that I didn't know?"

I couldn't say anything anymore.

"I can't believe that little boy is the same kid who beat SAO last year."

I bit my lip to keep from yelling with anger.

"He's a man. And he's more of a man than you'll ever be!"

He seemed to ignore me.

"You do know how I told you that I've been having former SAO survivors kidnapped, right?"

I nodded without a word.

"Well, it just so happens that your "boyfriend" is a off limits to the abductors that I have out in the real world."

"What do you mean, "off limits"?"

He turned to look at me over his shoulder.

"He's off limits, because I know that he's fighting to get you out of here, that he's on his way now. And I want to meet him and see him for myself before I squash him like a bug."

I just looked down at the bed, seemingly losing all of the strength I had to say anything. I heard him get up now.

"Well, I suppose I should be going now. Got lots to do today."

I didn't say a word to him after that.

"I hope you don't miss me too much."

I could have sworn I heard him chuckle as he stood by the cage's exit. I tried to look at the code to the keypad on the door, through the reflection of the mirror, even though my vision was blurred being this far away. The door finally opened, and he walked out of the cage, before the door closed just as quickly. I continued just sitting there, as I pondered what I had seen in the mirror.

"Eight, one, one, three, two, nine." I muttered to myself.

 _Kirito_

 _Neutral Territory, Ancient Forest_

The three of us flew through the skies of ALfheim, currently in combat with several small, dragon-like creatures. As we fought, I heard Leafa begin to chant. I turned to face her, to see that she was making an incantation. Eventually, several boomerang-shaped objects flew from her hand and killed one of the creatures.

"Nice one!" Klein replied as the battle aftermath window popped up.

Leafa lowered herself so she was hovering right next to me. She gave me a smile, as the light of her wings dimmed, which she noticed with a worried look.

"Our wings aren't going to last for much longer. I think we should land down there for a bit!"

She turned and pointed at the ground.

"Okay." I said.

"Let's go!" Klein chimed in.

The three of us descended and eventually came to a stop in a small clearing, next to a stream. Leafa let out a yawn and stretched, while I stretched my arms and while Klein flopped down into the grass.

"Okay." Leafa spoke once she finished stretching. "Are either of you tired yet?"

"Nope." I replied.

"What he said." Klein chimed in once again.

Leafa's smile then dropped from her face.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Well, flying is out for the three of us for the meantime."

"What?" Klein asked. "Why?"

She pointed ahead and we looked to where she was pointing.

"You see that mountain way over there?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"It's above the altitude limit, so we can't fly over. To pass it, we'll have to go through a cave system under the mountain. It's the toughest part of the trip between Sylph Territory and Arun. Or so I've heard, at least. I've never been through here myself."

"Well?" I asked. "What are we waiting for? Let's get moving!"

I began to walk forward, but I didn't get very far.

Hey, wait!" she said as she ran forward and grabbed my wrist.

I turned back to look at her.

"What?"

"These caves, they're pretty long. We may be in there for a while."

"Okay, what's your point? I'm not willing to wait much longer."

"My point is that the caves _are_ pretty long. But there is a neutral mining town in the middle where we could rest for a while. I was going to ask; are you guys good on time? Or do you need to get back?"

"I'm not doing anything else today, so I'm good." Klein answered first.

"Well, it's seven at night right now in the real world, isn't it?" I asked. "Yeah, I can keep going for a while."

"Cool. I can, too. Let's keep going! But since we're here, we should rotate out."

"Rotate out?" Klein asked. "What does that mean?"

"It means we take turns logging out and resting while the other or others keep watch. You can't log out in the field, remember? So, we have to take turns logging out. The person who stays behind guards the other's avatar."

"Okay. Well, I don't have to do anything yet." I replied.

"Same." Klein chimed in. "Ladies first."

I rolled my eyes and chuckled.

"Okay, don't mind if I do." She replied. "See you in about twenty minutes."

She swiped down with her hand and opened her menu. She then logged out and her avatar went limp. I then looked at Klein.

"Twenty minutes, huh?" he asked me.

"Yeah." I nodded. "What do you think we should do?"

"That depends. Know any good jokes?"

 _Suguha/Leafa_

 _Kazuto's House_

For some reason, once I opened my eyes, I let out a light gasp. As usual, the first thing I saw was the poster of my ALO avatar on my ceiling. I sat up with a sigh, before I stood up from my bed. I walked over to the door and opened it, before stepping out into the hall. Before I took any steps down the hall, I looked down and realized that I only had on a T-shirt and underwear.

I retreated back into my room to get properly dressed. A few minutes later, I walked back out into the hall, now wearing shorts and my red jacket. I walked over to the door to Kazuto's bedroom and knocked.

"Kazuto? What do you want to do for dinner?" I asked.

I stood there for a few seconds and didn't get an answer. I stared down at the door.

"I wonder if he's asleep?" I muttered to myself, as I reached for the doorknob.

However, I couldn't bring myself to open the door. I lowered my hand and just shook my head.

 _If he's asleep, I should just leave him alone,_ I thought.

I walked down to the kitchen and made myself dinner, while leaving something out for him to eat later. After I had eaten dinner, I decided to go take a quick shower.

 _I can't wait to get back there. I can't wait to go to new places in this new world._

I eventually left the shower and got back into some relaxing clothing, before returning back to my room.

 _Kirito_

 _Neutral Territory, Ancient Forest_

I sat on the forest floor in silence as I continued to wait.

"Hey, I'm back!" Leafa's voice somewhat surprised me. "Did you guys see any monsters?"

I turned to look at her as I munched on the small stick in my mouth.

"No, we haven't seen anything. It's been pretty clear."

She gave me a weird look.

"What's that you're chewing on?"

"Oh, this?" I asked as I took it out of my mouth. "I bought a bunch of them before we left Sylvain. I don't know what they're called, but an NPC said that you can only get them there."

"I've never seen them."

I tossed her one. She stared at it for a few seconds before she bit down on it. She then quickly pulled it from her mouth and let out a yell. She started coughing, trying to get over the taste of it. I just chuckled in response.

"Well, I hate to leave you hanging, but it _is_ my turn."

I swiped down and opened my menu. Before I could hit the logout button, she stopped me.

"Hey, hold on a second. Where did Klein go?"

I turned my head to look at her.

"He's over there!" I pointed over her shoulder.

She turned around to see Klein lying in the grass, snoring.

"Oh." She said, as she turned back to face me. "He should be woken up. If he sleeps for too long in here, he'll be logged out. And all his work coming with us will go down the drain."

I shrugged.

"He's fine. He hasn't been asleep for even five minutes. Just wake him up."

"Okay. Well, see you, soon then?"

I nodded.

"Yep. I won't take too long."

I swiped down with my hand, opening my menu and pressed the log out button.

 _Suguha/Leafa_

Once Kirito was gone, I walked over to Klein's sleeping form. I began kicking at his side.

"Get up!" I exclaimed.

Klein shifted on the ground as he continued sleeping, or rather, trying to.

"Come on, Mom! I don't want to go to work!"

I chuckled to myself as I continued kicking him.

"Come on, get up!"

Klein finally let out a grunt and opened his eyes.

"Alright, alright!" he said as he sat up. "I'm up!"

I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Good. Let's keep it that way."

"Why did you have to wake me up? I was having the best dream!"

"Sorry. I want to be able to move as soon as Kirito gets back."

"He already left?"

"Yeah."

"How long was I out anyway?"

"Kirito said that you hadn't been out for even five minutes."

"Five minutes?! That doesn't even count as a nap!"

I rolled my eyes, before I walked back over to Kirito's motionless form.

"Don't take too long." I muttered at his motionless form.

Just then, I noticed something in his coat pocket move.

"Huh?" I muttered.

"What is it?" Klein asked as I heard him walk over to me.

As he reached me, a familiar pixie began to peek out of Kirito's coat pocket.

"Oh, Yui! It's you!" Klein replied.

"Hi." She said in a shy tone as she flew up to Kirito's shoulder and sat down there.

"Wait," I spoke as I sat down on the ground next to him. "You can move when your master isn't here?"

"Well, of course I can move! You know, I'm my own person! And for your information, he's not my master, he's my Daddy!"

I exchanged glances with Klein before I looked back at her.

"About that, I was going to ask you before, why do you call him your Daddy? Did he, you know, set you that way, or something?"

"He didn't do anything to my settings, he saved me! He told me I was his daughter, that makes him my Daddy! You see how that works?"

"Yeah." Klein said. "That makes sense to me?"

I looked up at him with surprise.

"Yeah, I guess." I replied as I turned back to Yui. "Do you, you know, like him?"

She looked back at me with surprise.

"I'm sorry." She said as she tilted her head to the right. "I don't understand what you mean by "like"."

"Are you serious?" I asked as I lightly scratched my cheek. "It means, that you want to be with him all the time. And when you're together, you get excited about being near him. Or something like that."

Before I could do or think about anything else, Klein spoke.

"So, is there anyone that you like that way, Leafa?"

I felt my face flare up with heat.

"Shut up, idiot."

"Come on! Is it that guy from yesterday and today? What was his name? Recon, right?"

I turned to look at him, with a blush on my face.

"I said, shut up!"

He chuckled as he shrugged.

"Whatever. I didn't want to know anyway!"

I rolled my eyes as I looked away from him.

"What are you two arguing about?"

I looked back at Kirito, surprised to see that he was back already.

"No, seriously. What's going on? Did something happen? Were we attacked?"

Yui was the first to speak.

"Welcome back, Daddy! Leafa was just explaining to me what it means when someone says..."

I spoke up before she could finish her sentence.

"Um, please. Just stop right there."

Yui looked at me with confusion.

"Why? I can explain it!"

I shook my head.

"No, Yui. It's alright. Just please, drop it."

"Okay! Consider it dropped!"

"What happened while I was gone?" Kirito asked with a hint of impatience in his voice.

"Nothing." I said as I turned back to face him. "Anyway, you weren't gone for very long. What's going on?"

"Well, my family isn't home right now. But they left something out for me. I ate pretty quickly."

"Great! Well, let's get going!"

The two of us stood up and Kirito turned to Klein.

"Klein, are you sure you don't need to log out? This is your last chance!"

"Nope!" he replied with a smile. "I'm good!"

"If you say so." Kirito replied as he turned around. "Lead the way, Leafa!"

I stepped forward with a smile on my face as my wings materialized on my back. Just then, Kirito stopped walking and slowly looked around us.

"Hey, is something wrong?" I asked.

"Do you ever get the feeling that you're being watched?" Klein asked before he could answer.

Kirito turned to look at him.

"You sense it, too?"

He nodded.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"It sort of feels like someone is watching us. Yui, are there any players nearby?"

"No." she replied as she flew back into Kirito's coat pocket. "I'm not sensing the presence of any other players."

I put my hand on my chin.

"I guess it's possible that someone put a tracer on us."

"What the heck's a tracer?" Klein asked.

"A kind of tracking magic." I replied.

"Oh, right. Duh."

I rolled my eyes at his attempt to humor us.

"Anyway, it looks like a small animal or an insect. It tells the caster a target's position."

"Can you dispel it?" Kirito asked.

"Sure! If you can find it, that is."

"Wah-wah." Klein replied.

"The thing is," I continued speaking, ignoring him. "If the caster's magic skill is high, the tracer can track you from far away. And in a field this size, it'd take forever to find it."

"Great. Maybe it's just our imaginations running wild. Come on, let's get going."

"Okay." I responded.

And with that, the three of us flew up into the sky, continuing on our journey.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for this chapter! I'm sorry it took much longer than I promised. Hopefully I'll have the rest of Fairy Dance by the end of the year.

* So, what do you guys think of the reboot idea? Like I said, it won't affect this story. And it won't be for a few more years. I want to keep this story going for as long as I can. I'll definitely be adapting the Fatal/Phantom Bullet, Excalibur and Mother's Rosario. As far as Alicization goes however, I haven't seen it yet. So, that may be later down the line.

* As before, I hoped you enjoyed the chapter. That's going to do it for me, I think. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _SwordY05hi (Chapter 20): I love this chapter. Now we beginning to get things going. I know I don't like that Kirito lied, but it is something he would do. I can see that being in his character. Now when ever Sachi join, and only if she does, I can be more happy than now._

 _But it has to come from within herself to do it, and after see what she been through, I don't know if she would. I still wish Sachi the best in this story. She is a wonderful character in my opinion. Also for Asuna, beat that idiot who imprisoned you. I believe she would make it out. But have to wait and see on her. Go Asuna, go._

Thanks, Yoshi. I'm glad you liked the chapter. Yes, things are moving now. It is in Kirito's character to lie. I can say that Sachi will join, but I won't say when she will. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _AmethystPone (Chapter 20): Too revealing? Hahaha... No, but seriously, don't ever let prudishness get in the way of a story. Focusing too much on that one aspect is detrimental...And the more you try the more obvious it gets._

 _But then again, the dress came from Sugou, so... Not to mention, this is a text based media. Even if it is revealing, you would need to image it being revealing in your head...which also means you are a closet pervert because you want it to be revealing in your head so you can claim to be morally superior...But who are you morally superior to? The villain? or the Audience?_

 _I am a pervert and I know it. A lot of us are perverts and we know it. And the only line separating us from sexual harassment is that we understand NO means NO, and we can control ourselves passably in social situations. So...What is it that you are trying to prove when you point out the 'revealing-ness' of the outfit given to her by Sugou, the Villain, in this?_

 _Aside from that, Imma put this in a read-later thingy...Since from what I skimmed, it seemed interesting enough, but I don't have the time to read properly at the moment._

Thanks, Amethyst. I think I get what you're saying. I just want to say that I'm not really trying to pull anything. You can call my bluff if you want, but I'm really not trying to prove a thing. Saying that I'm perverted by noticing that Asuna's canon dress is revealing? Fine. I can see that.

But I'm being honest now with saying that I just didn't like that aspect of Fairy Dance. If I'm being honest, there a lot of things about Fairy Dance that I dislike. And I plan to rectify these things in my adaptation. Say what you want, but my changes has nothing to do with me being perverted. Which I am in a sense, I will admit it. But I won't say anything else about it. Although, I am happy with the prospect that you may be back to read this. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Ricky (Chapter 6): Your story makes no sense, kirito save diabel and has his gratitude yet you still want to label a beater. He would have had everyone's support and didn't need to take the hit with this outcome. You even refuse to have asuna and Klien with him why? No reason. Their is very little known about Sachi and she really no role to play in this story other than just being their basically a useless character sorry just poor writing and copying and pasting_

Um, thanks Ricky. Well, I'm sorry that my story doesn't make sense. I will first say that you are not wrong about Kirito taking everyone's support and not having to take a hit. I get that. But I think his days as a lonesome beater (as limited as they were in my version) are important to the story.

I honestly don't know why I refused to have Asuna and Klein go with him. Maybe because I just wanted him to go off own his own for a while, just so he could meet the Moonlit Black Cats? Speaking of which, please don't call Sachi a useless character. You say that she's a useless character.

Well, maybe in the source material she was a useless character, as she didn't do much. When I was coming up with ideas for my version, I just couldn't kill her off. She does have a purpose in the story. But I don't imagine that I can convince you. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: When Recon sends Leafa a cryptic message, will she, Klein and Kirito have time to figure it out before there are consequences? When Klein and Kirito decide to take a break for the night, they go out for a late night meal, where they come into conflict with four mysterious men.


	22. Chapter 22: The Legrue Corridor

Chapter 22: The Legrue Corridor

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Two! This chapter will be where things begin to take off. I won't say anything else. So, with nothing else to be said, let's get on with the chapter!

 _Kirito_

 _The Legrue Corridor, Neutral Territory, ALfheim – December 8_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Eight Days Remaining_

We had come to a stop in the Legrue Corridor – a dungeon/cave system that ran underneath the mountain range that we had to pass to reach The World Tree. I completed an incantation, causing the tunnel ahead of us to be lit up.

"Whoa!" Leafa replied.

"Yeah, I'll say!" Klein chimed in.

"Everything looks way brighter now!" she exclaimed, her voice echoing throughout the tunnel. "So, this is night vision magic? I guess Spriggans are good for something, after all!"

I let out a sigh.

"Thanks." I replied in a glum tone.

"I don't know if that was a compliment or not, but that had to hurt!" Klein exclaimed.

Both he and Leafa chuckled after that.

"Hey, you're practicing the magic that you can use." She said. "That's the important thing."

"And projecting illusions! Don't forget the illusions!"

"Right!" Leafa exclaimed as she looked at Klein, before looking back at me. "Illusions are one of your specialties!"

"Illusions?"

"Yeah, to trick people with!" she replied as she turned her head to the side and closed her eyes. "It's cool, but it's not going to help anyone very much in combat."

She opened her eyes and looked back at me.

"But you never know! In a life or death situation, your lame Spriggan magic may actually come in handy!"

She turned and walked away, chuckling as she waved at me from over her shoulder.

"Lame?" I muttered to myself as I just stood there.

"Ha, she called you lame!" Klein replied as he walked over to me.

"Shut up." I replied as I looked at him, before walking to catch up with Leafa.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

I walked down the tunnel, with Leafa and Klein on either side of me, as I muttered the words for an incantation.

"No, no, no. Stop." Leafa replied. "You're memorizing the words. You have to learn what the words mean first, then match them with the effects of the magic. That's how you memorize spells."

I heaved a sigh as we continued walking.

"I never thought I'd be in a different game and have to memorize words from a different language." I said. "This is impossible!"

"You'll get the hang of it." Klein reassured me as he patted my back.

"Thanks." I said in a glum tone.

"Also, just so you know, the higher-ranked spells have about twenty words."

I let out a groan as I hung my head.

"Well, it looks like I'm sticking to fighting."

"Would you quit complaining?" Leafa asked.

Just then a beep was heard.

"Sorry, I have to get this." Leafa replied, as she swiped down with her hand and pulled up her menu.

"Sure, no problem." I replied as I turned to Klein. "So, how you doing?"

"Great!" he said as he shot me a smile. "We're making great time!"

"You know what? Seeing as it's just the first day of our journey, I have to agree with you. We _are_ making good time."

Before he could reply, Leafa spoke up.

"It's Recon again. It's probably nothing, but I'll check anyway. It says, "I was right. Be careful, s". That's it."

Klein and I looked back at Leafa with confusion, to see that she had a confused look on her face as well.

"S? What does "S" mean?" Klein asked.

"You got me." I replied.

"Sa... Shi... Su..." she muttered. " _Oh_."

She kept muttering to herself and it seemed like she was getting frustrated.

"What's wrong?" Klein asked.

"It's nothing." She replied.

I felt Yui moving around in my coat pocket and she popped up out of the pocket.

"Daddy!" she said. "I'm picking up movement behind us!"

"Are they monsters?" I asked.

"Uh-uh. They're players! A lot, twelve total!"

"You're kidding!" Leafa whispered as she turned to look at me.

"What do we do?" Klein asked.

Leafa put her hand to her chin, looking like she was thinking.

"I've got a bad feeling about this." She whispered. "We better take cover!"

"Right!" Klein chimed in. "Um, where?"

She chuckled.

"Just leave that to me!" she replied.

She then grabbed Klein and I, shoving both of us into an alcove, with just enough room for the two of us and barely enough room for us three.

"Now scoot! Now!" she urged.

Klein and I did our best to scoot over as far as we could go, and then she squeezed in just to my right. She began chanting in a foreign language and then, a wall appeared in front of us. A wall that we could slightly see through, but a wall, nonetheless.

"We can talk, but we have to be quiet." Leafa whispered. "Anything louder than a whisper, and it'll break the spell."

"Okay." Klein and I whispered in unison as I nodded.

"They'll be coming into view soon!" Yui whispered to us.

I craned my head to try to get a better look.

"What is that?" I asked. "Do you see it?"

"See what?" Klein asked.

"No, I can't see anything." She whispered.

"I can tell that it's not a player. It's got red eyes. Kinda like a bat."

She looked back at the wall in front of us.

"I guess we're about to find out."

Just then, I felt a tingling sensation in my nose.

"I have to sneeze." I replied.

"Shh!" Klein and Leafa both whispered to me.

I did my best to try to resist the sensation in my nose, but it was no use.

"Ah-ah..."

Klein quickly grabbed my nose and pinched down on it, preventing me from sneezing. It was the most uncomfortable experience, but it was better than giving away our position.

"Just a little while longer." Leafa whispered.

A few seconds later, a bat with glowing red eyes came into view.

"That's a high-level trace searcher." Leafa whispered. "Let's just wait for it to pass."

And it eventually did. Once it passed, we walked through the fake wall and it disappeared.

"Well, at least it's over." Leafa replied.

Unfortunately, that tingling feeling had returned to my nose. Yes, that tingling feeling.

"Ah-choo!" I finally sneezed, the sound echoing throughout the tunnel.

Klein let out a sigh.

"You were saying?" he asked.

Seconds later, the bat that we thought we had lost came flying back down the tunnel to our location.

"Good going, buddy." He said to me.

"Don't freak out. It'd be better for us to destroy it anyway." Leafa replied.

She then began chanting in a foreign language once again, before several shards of bright light were sent flying towards the searcher, destroying it. Knowing that it was gone, I took a breath.

"Okay, no time to rest, guys. We have to go, right now!"

"Why?" Klein asked. "Can't we just hide again?"

Leafa just started running and we were forced to follow her.

"They already know we're here! That tracer had us pegged. Hiding's not going to do us any good!" she spoke as she turned to look at me. "Besides, that bat was a fire-element familiar! That can only mean the ones who are tracking us are..."

"Salamanders!" Klein exclaimed.

"Right! But what's a party of Salamanders doing way down here?"

At that point, we exited the tunnel. The path still continued, but it had opened up into a huge cavern and several feet ahead of us, there was a small walled town that sat in the middle of a lake that glowed a dim blue. And there was a path that ran in and out of the town.

"Wow, check out the lake!" I exclaimed.

We continued running closer to the town.

"Looks like we're gonna get away!" Klein exclaimed.

"Watch where you're going, or you'll fall in!" Leafa replied as we continued running.

Just then, two beams of light flew ahead of us and hit the wooden gate to the town. After that, a stone wall was generated in front of the gate.

"Oh, crap!" Leafa exclaimed.

"Damn it!" I exclaimed as I ran forward.

I leapt into the air as I drew my sword and I struck the wall, but it had no effect. I fell right down to the ground and landed on my back. Klein ran over to me and began to help me up.

"Way to go, Dummy!" he exclaimed.

"Thanks." I replied as I stood up. "Leafa, what is that? Why can't I cut through it?"

"Don't act like it's her fault that you're in a hurry!"

"Shut up."

"It's an earth-magic barrier, you can bash on it all day, but it'll never break."

"Maybe we can just go in the lake." Klein replied as he pulled himself up onto the stone rail of the path we were on.

"I wouldn't recommend that." Leafa replied.

"Why?" he asked as he turned back to look at us.

"The water is filled with high-level monsters. The Undines are the only ones who can take those kind of things on."

"Aw." He let out a groan of disappointment as he stepped down. "So, what do we do?"

"I think you know." I said as I drew my sword. "The only option left is to stand our ground and fight."

"Why is always about fighting with you?" he asked.

I didn't answer.

"Okay, whatever you say." He said as he unsheathed his katana.

"This won't be easy." Leafa replied as she came to our side. "If the Salamanders have high-level earth magic, it can only mean one thing. They have a powerful mage on their side!"

She unsheathed her sword as we heard the approaching footsteps.

"Leafa, I know you're good with a sword, so don't take this the wrong way. but could you back me up from here on in? You too, Klein?"

"Why?" she asked.

"Yeah, what do you have in mind?"

"I need Leafa to stay behind and focus on healing me if I need it. And Klein, I need you to help out if it gets too heated for me."

"You got it, buddy!"

"Wait, you seriously aren't about to go along with this?"

"Trust me, he knows what he's doing."

"If you two do that, I'll be able to fight harder without having to worry about my HP."

Leafa was silent for a few seconds, before she chuckled.

"If you say so." She replied as I heard her take a few steps back.

I could see the Salamanders clearly now. The three heading my way were all shield users and they wore what looked like some kind of heavy armor. And of course, all of it was red. I squinted, before I charged forward. As they saw this, the three Salamanders began to run as well. And once they got close to me, they slammed their shields down onto the ground. I let out a yell as I struck the shields with my sword and wave of energy was released. Although, it did little else than make noise. The Salamanders were unaffected; they still had full HP. I looked ahead and saw that there were three mages behind the shield users.

And then behind them, four or five archers, maybe? It was hard to tell. The three mages ahead began chanting in a foreign language, as circles of glowing, bright light appeared at their feet. The other Salamanders, who I though might have been archers, were actually mages, too, as they had the same effect. And there were six of them, not four or five. As they cast some sort of spell, the shields in front of me began to glow.

 _What is this? Some kind of defense buff?_

I heard the six mages in the back finish an incantation, which sent fire balls flying my way. I tried to block it with my sword, but the resulting explosion brought me to my knees.

"Kirito!" I heard Klein and Leafa cry out in unison.

My HP had now entered the yellow zone. I sat there on my knees, panting after the attack.

 _Well, I suppose that's an appropriate attack. Salamanders do use fire-magic, after all!_

I wasn't backing down however, and neither were the two behind me. I heard Leafa began to chant in a foreign language, no doubt conjuring up a healing spell. A few seconds passed and I was healed back up, nearly to full HP. I let out a breath, feeling rejuvenated. I chuckled as I got back up and sprinted towards the Salamanders. I thought I could hear one of them say something, as I leapt into the air with a yell of fury and struck the shields with my sword. I did some damage to them, but their HP quickly refilled.

And more fireballs came my way, which knocked me out of the air once they had collided with me. I clattered onto the bridge, rolling several times over. I heard Leafa begin to conjure up another healing spell and a few seconds later, my HP was restored.

"What are we going to do?!" she exclaimed. "He's going to run out of HP at this point!"

"Don't worry about him!" Klein exclaimed. "I know it looks bad, but trust me, he knows what he's doing!"

I wanted to thank Klein for those words, but I had to be honest. I was beginning to think that this wasn't the best course of action. I couldn't let myself stop, though.

"That's enough, Kirito!" Leafa called from behind me. "If we lose, it'll just mean a couple more hours of flying! Let's give up while we can!"

I turned my head to briefly look at them.

"No way." I muttered.

I could barely hear her gasp with surprise.

"See? Told you he wasn't one to back down!"

"As long as I'm alive, I'm not going to let anyone in my party die! I won't let that happen again!"

I turned back, as Leafa probably had a confused expression on her face.

 _I've come too far to back down now!_

The fire in front of me finally went out and after letting out a yell of rage, I charged once again. Once I got close to the shield users, instead of attacking again, I just grabbed one of the shields and tried to pull it to the left. Once there was a sizeable gap, I shoved my sword through and began attempting to force the shields apart.

"What the hell?!" one of the Salamanders exclaimed. "What's he doing?!"

As I struggled, I felt Yui leave my coat pocket and fly backwards. I didn't worry about her; I couldn't let my focus diminish for even a second.

 _Leafa_

"Hurry!" Yui exclaimed as she reached Klein and me. "This is your only chance!"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You have to use all the mana you have! Hurry and focus on shielding him from the next magic attack!"

"Um, okay. But I don't think it's going to help."

I looked ahead to see Kirito still trying to force the shield users apart and behind him, the mages were getting ready for another round of magic. Kirito kicked off of the shield he was working on, taking his sword with him as this happened. I turned to look at Yui, who stared back at me with determination. I finally gave in and smiled with a nod. I closed my eyes and began to conjure up another incantation, meanwhile the Salamanders were no doubt doing the same thing.

Once I had finished, dozens of butterfly-like creatures made of glowing white light flew over to Kirito and formed a Butterfly Shield around him. More fireballs flew forward from the Salamanders, however all they damaged this time was the bubble shield. I struggled to keep standing, as I couldn't shield myself from the blast of wind that the fireballs produced.

"Do it now, Daddy!" Yui exclaimed.

I looked on with confusion, as I watched Kirito begin to conjure up a spell of his own. After a few seconds of him speaking in a foreign language, I realized what he was doing.

 _He's using illusion-magic. But all that's going to do is make him look like a giant monster!_

Kirito's Butterfly Shield had been completely depleted now and he was engulfed by the flames. Once the flames began to die down, I saw the silhouette of a giant monster from within. The flames fully dissipated, and I saw the monster that Kirito was now disguised as. It looked like something out of Greek mythology, and had dark fur, razor sharp claws and horns on either side of its head. It also had a long tail. I looked up at him with shock.

"Is that you, Kirito?" I muttered to myself.

 _Kirito_

I used the illusion-magic to disguise myself as something akin to The Gleam Eyes from SAO. I let out a demonic laugh, as a few of the Salamander shield users and mages stared up at me with terror in their eyes. I let out a roar as I looked at the cave ceiling, which sent a rush of wind down the path. I finally dashed forward, allowing my arms to trail behind me as I got closer to the Salamanders.

I skewered the first shield user who tried to escape, causing him to die almost instantly. Once his body dissolved into red flames and his Remain Light was the only thing that was left in my hand, I dropped it. The other two shield users began to freak out and broke formation, much to their leader's dismay.

"You idiots! Don't break formation! It's not real, don't be afraid! He can't hurt us if we stick to the plan and stay in formation!"

I let out another roar, before I bent down and bit down on one of the shield users, yanking him up from the ground. I grabbed the other shield user on my way back up and chomped down on the one in my mouth, causing him to dissolve into flames. As for the other one, I tossed him to the ground, creating a crater where he landed and he too, dissolved into flames. Their leader now looked terrified from where he stood.

"H-Hit him with an explosive spell!" he exclaimed as he stuttered, clearly afraid now.

The mages began working up a new spell, as I roared and charged again. I leapt up into the air, causing the mages to falter in their incantations. Once I landed, I swept two of them with my tail, sending up into the air to their deaths. I could have sworn I heard Yui yell something, but I couldn't tell what it was. I slammed my fist into the ground, killing more of them. However, I didn't see how many I had gotten, I lost count. Their leader tried but failed to attack me and afterwards, I stomped on the ground and roared at him.

"Retreat! Retreat!" he exclaimed. "Retreat!"

I leapt into the air again, flipped in midair and landed behind them. I struck all of them, until their leader was left, quivering with fear in front of me. Eventually he turned and began to run in the towards the edge of the bridge, away from me. He leapt over the stone rail and fell into the lake below. Then I heard his screams as he was killed by a water monster. I picked up the next guy and began to squeeze down on his head.

"Stop it!" he exclaimed in protest.

Meanwhile, Leafa had something to say as well.

"Wait, Kirito!" she exclaimed as she ran forward. "Hold on! Don't kill him!"

I listened and dropped him to the ground, as I watched Klein follow Leafa with confusion.

"Isn't my Daddy amazing?!" Yui exclaimed with joy.

"Ow, my..." the Salamander I spared try to speak, but he didn't get very far before Leafa pulled her sword on him, causing him to gasp.

Klein came to a stop beside Leafa, still looking confused.

"Okay, if you want to live, you better tell me who sent you asshats after us!" she exclaimed.

The Salamander tensed up, before turning away.

"Never! Kill me if you want!"

"You got it."

Before she could do anything however, the spell timed out and I reverted back to my Spriggan form.

"Oh-ho, man! Now, _that_ was cool!" I exclaimed.

Leafa turned back to look at me as I spoke. I walked over to them and once I reached them, crouched down so I could talk with the Salamander.

"That was an awesome fight!" I commended him.

"Huh?" he let out a confused gasp.

"Your plan wasn't shabby, either. If I was alone, I wouldn't have lasted a minute against you dorks."

"What are you telling him that for?" Leafa asked.

"Yeah, Kirito!" Klein chimed in. "What gives?"

I held up my hand.

"Guys, relax. Just let me handle this."

I put my hand on the Salamander's shoulder, as I made my window visible to him.

"Listen up. I want to see if you and me can make a deal. Check it out, those are all the items and Yuld I won after beating your asses. All you have to do is just answer my questions, and they could be yours! Sound good?"

He looked at me with surprise but eventually straightened himself out.

"Seriously?" he eventually whispered to me.

I returned his suspicious look with a grin.

"Totally."

Eventually, after he got the picture, we both chuckled. Leafa turned her back on us at this point.

"Ugh, men."

"It's like they forgot we're even here." Yui chimed in.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

Klein, Leafa and Yui had gathered around us as the Salamander began to explain himself.

"Earlier tonight, I got this urgent text from G-Takusu. He's the leader of the mage squad, or used to be, anyway. So, I got this text telling us all to meet him here. When I showed up, he said he needed twelve guys to go on a hunt for three players. At first, I thought it was overkill, you know? But he said that you guys took out Kagemune, so it made sense."

"Who's this Kagemune guy?" Klein and I asked in unison.

"He's the leader of the lancer squad. And he's known for hunting Sylphs. Yesterday, he got creamed in a fight and had to retreat. That was you guys, wasn't it?"

"Well, more him than me!" Klein said as he jabbed me.

"Hey, knock it off!" I said, as I jabbed him back.

"Wait," Leafa spoke up. "Why is G-Takusu interested in getting us out of the way?"

"Well, the order came from the top. Something about you interfering with the plan."

"Yeah?" Klein asked. "What plan is that?"

"Hey, hey, I'm just a grunt. They don't tell me anything. But I'm pretty sure something pretty big is about to go down. When I logged on today, I saw this big ass swarm of Salamander troops heading up North."

Leafa brought her fingers to her chin.

"No way. They're gonna go try to clear the World Tree, aren't they?"

"I doubt that." The Salamander shook his head. "Someone figured that to take the Tree, the whole army would need Ancient-Weapon-Class equipment, and we can't afford that stuff."

"Hmm."

He turned back to Klein and me.

"That's everything I know, I promise. You weren't lying about your end of the deal, were you?"

I smiled back at him.

"No. I'm a man of my word, partner!"

I heard Leafa grunt with discomfort as I said that. A couple minutes later, the trade was completed, and the Salamander departed from us.

"Hey, when you were rampaging as that big monster thing that was tearing everything up, was that you or an illusion?"

I wrinkled my eyebrows as I tried to think as we walked towards the walled off town.

"Yeah, I don't remember."

"Wait, you don't know?"

"Not really." I said as I put my hand on my chin. "It just happens sometimes. In the heat of battle, I snap and can't remember a thing after."

Leafa stopped following us for a second.

"Wow, scary."

"Not really." Klein replied.

I turned to look at him.

"What do you mean, "not really"?"

"I mean, you've always been like that!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever." I replied as I turned back around and resumed walking.

"What does that mean?" Leafa asked as she caught up with us.

"Ah, don't worry about it." I said as I decided to change the subject. "Although, I think I remembered most of what happened this time. Like, I know I used that spell that Yui had suggested. I also remember getting huge. And that was cool. I remember losing my sword and then grabbing people."

"Do you ever stop talking?" Klein teased.

"And you were chomping down on them!" Yui exclaimed, ignoring what Klein had said. "Remember that?"

I chuckled.

"Oh, yeah. I totally felt like a monster, all eating people and everything!"

"So, uh, what did they taste like?" Leafa asked.

"Kinda like grilled meat just before it gets burnt, all crispy..."

"Okay, good! Sorry, I asked."

I turned to look at her with a grin on my face. I suddenly grabbed her hand and bit down on it. She let out a scream of embarrassment. She then smacked me across the face, which caused me to let go. And then I felt something whack me on top of my head. I turned around to look at Klein, who was grinning from ear-to-ear.

"What was that for?" I asked with anger.

"That's what you get, you little weasel!"

"Weasel?"

Leafa suddenly walked ahead of us.

"Let's go." She muttered.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

We were now in the town within the Legrue Corridor.

"Wow!" Leafa replied next to us. "So, this is Legrue?"

Meanwhile, my cheek still felt like it was on fire.

"Ow..." I muttered. "It still hurts."

"Well, you shouldn't be biting people!" Yui replied in a stern tone.

"Yeah, that's your own damn fault." Klein replied.

"I'll say." Leafa chimed in.

"Why is everyone ganging up on me? I was just trying to break the tension with a stupid joke is all."

"Bite me again and I'll cut you in half." She muttered in a threatening tone.

I let out a bit of a scared grunt.

"Yes, Ma'am." I said in a rushed tone.

"Ha!" Klein laughed.

Leafa continued looking at me, before she eventually turned away and smiled at something.

"Oh, look!" she said.

She let out a slight giggle as she walked up to a table and picked up a small sword.

"Oh," I spoke as I walked up to her. "Right before those Salamanders attacked, you got a message from your friend."

"Hmm? Oh, I totally forgot!"

She put down the sword and swiped down, opening her menu.

"Recon's not online." She said as she opened her friend list. "Maybe he's asleep?"

"Okay." I said. "Why don't you log out and give him a call?"

She put her hand to her chin again.

"Hmm. Yeah, I think I'd better check in with him. I'll only be gone a sec. Wait for me here, okay?"

"Take your time." Klein replied.

She turned to him with a smile.

"Thanks." She replied, before turning to Yui. "Yui, will you please keep an eye on my avatar?"

"Me?" she asked.

Leafa looked back with what I could only describe as a devious look on her face.

"Yeah, I need to make sure your Dad doesn't mess around with it while I'm out."

"Ugh." I let out a sigh.

"Copy that, Ma'am!" Yui exclaimed.

"You've got to be kidding me." I said.

"Ha!" Klein laughed again.

She turned to look at him.

"Hey, you aren't off the hook!"

"Ah, come on!"

Leafa ignored him and sat down at the nearest bench. She then swiped down and opened her menu. She looked up and smiled at us as we waved, and then she was gone.

 _Suguha/Leafa_

 _Kazuto's House_

I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw, being my ALO poster. I sat up as I rubbed my eyes and looked across the room, to see my phone flashing red from on my desk. I turned on my lamp in the corner of my room and sat down at my desk, picking up my phone. I gasped when I saw that I had more than six missed calls from Nagata. Before I could scroll down at all, my phone began ringing. It was Nagata! I let out a confused grunt as I answered it.

"Hey, Nagata. What's with all the calls? What do you want?"

"You picked up!" he exclaimed from the other end. "Finally! Where were you, Suguha?"

"Ugh, I was dealing with some in-game stuff."

"W-We got trouble! Like, like big trouble! Sigurd's coming after us! And that's not all! He betrayed Sakuya, the Sylph commander!"

 _What?_

"Betrayed her? How? Start from the beginning and tell me everything that happened."

"Alright, but we don't have a lot of time! Okay... You remember when the Salamanders ambushed us in the Ancient Forest? Well, didn't that whole set up seem a little weird to you?"

I shrugged, even though Nagata couldn't see me.

"I don't know, not really. Why do you think it was weird?"

"Remember how Sigurd said he'd be the decoy and then lured three of them away?"

 _Oh, yeah!_

"Yeah, now that you mention it..."

"Don't you think it was out of character? I mean, usually he'd make someone else do it, right?"

"Yeah, well, I guess. I mean, you're right, it's weird. But what's your point?"

At that point, I began to hear the pitter patter of something on the roof, which made me look towards my window. I got up as Nagata kept talking and partially opened my blinds. It was raining. And it was really coming down.

"Okay, here it is," he continued. "I found out that he's been working as a spy for the Salamanders. Probably for a while now!"

"What?!" I asked with surprise. "Do you have proof, or did you just hear about it?"

"Remember how I said something was bugging me? Well, I used a transparency spell and I've been following Sigurd all day. I tracked him to a back alley, and I saw him and a couple others putting on invisibility cloaks. They were up to something, that was for sure. I followed them down into the sewers, where these two sketchy guys were waiting for them. I couldn't believe it. They were Salamanders! They were a little ways away from me and I couldn't hear everything, but I heard the Salamanders say that they put a tracer on you. I gasped after hearing that. And even though I tried to keep quiet, one of the Salamanders shot me with a crossbow."

"Go on. Then what?"

"I'm still in the sewers, paralyzed by the poison arrow."

"Well, now I know why you kept calling me IRL."

Just then, there was flash of lightning from outside.

"There's something else! Sakuya's supposed to form an alliance with the Cait Siths the day after tomorrow. The meeting is going to be in Neutral Territory and she's holding it in secret. Sigurd knows about it, too! He's going to show up at the signing ceremony and attack it!"

Another flash of lightning.

 _Kirito_

 _ALfheim Online – The Legrue Corridor, Legrue_

Klein and I were eating these meat stick type things that we had bought from a vender when Leafa got back.

"Oh hey, you're back!" Klein replied.

"Yeah, welcome!" I exclaimed.

"Welcome back, Leafa!" Yui chimed in.

It's when she didn't say anything in return, that I looked at her and saw that she had a weird expression on her face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked.

The expression remained on her face, before she smiled.

"Nothing! I'm fine. But, I uh, I have bad news."

"What is it?" Klein asked.

"Oh, nothing. It's just that I'm going through some stuff IRL and I need to take the night to think about it. I hope you guys don't mind if we find an Inn and call it a night?"

"No, that's fine!" I said. "I don't have a problem."

"Yeah, that's totally cool!" Klein chimed in. "Lead the way!"

 _A Few Minutes Later_

 _Inn – Legrue_

"So, I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow?" Leafa replied.

"Yeah, you got it!" I said.

"Okay. Good night, guys!"

"Good night!" Klein and I said in unison.

She swiped down and opened her menu, before logging out. Once she was gone, I turned to Klein.

"Well, I guess I'll talk to you tomorrow?" I asked.

He nodded.

"Yep. See you later, Kiri-Dude!"

"See ya."

I turned away and swiped down on my menu. Then, I logged out.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House_

Once I opened my eyes, I sat up a few seconds later and took off my NerveGear. I got up from my bed and went to go set it down in its place on my shelf. As I was walking over past my nightstand, I picked up my phone from my desk. When I brought up the screen, I noticed that there were two missed calls from Sachi. One of them was two hours ago and the other was one hour ago. I pulled up my contacts and dialed her number, hoping that she would pick up at this hour. After a few seconds, she did.

"Hello?" she asked in a sleepy voice.

"Hey, Sachi! Were you asleep?"

"Yeah. Don't you realize that it's almost two in the morning?"

I chuckled.

"Yeah, sorry. Klein and I were diving in ALO all night today. We just got off."

"You guys are really serious about this aren't you?"

"Yeah, you could say that."

There was silence between us for a few seconds.

"Oh, um, speaking of ALfheim Online..."

"Yeah?"

"Um, just out of curiosity, what race are you playing as?"

"Oh, what race? I'm playing as a Spriggan and Klein is playing as a Salamander."

"Oh, okay."

"Wait. Are you actually thinking of playing with us?"

"No, no, no! Honest! I was just curious!"

"Um, okay. If you say so."

"Um, well, I'm gonna go. Good night, Kirito!"

"Um, okay. Good night?"

She hung up before I finished my sentence. Before I could put my phone back down, it started vibrating, nearly scaring me. I looked at my caller ID to see that Klein was calling.

 _What the hell? What could he want?_

I picked up my phone and answered it.

"Klein?" I said him name. "What do you want? We just said our goodnights!"

"Yeah, I know." He said. "But I'm kind of hungry."

I just blinked.

"So?"

"Do you want to go out to one of the cafés that's open late and get something to eat?"

"It's one in the morning! Past that, actually!"

"But I'm hungry!"

I let out a groan of anger.

"Fine! I'll be waiting for you downstairs."

"Okay, cool! See you soon!"

I hung up my phone. I forced a sigh as I moved over to my dresser to get out suitable clothes to wear.

 _Sometime Later_

Klein and I stopped at a café that was still open to get a quick bite to eat. Our food had come around and we were talking about ALO stuff.

"So, am I the only one who noticed that the thing you turned into looked like that one boss from SAO? What was it? The Gleam-Eyes or something like that?"

I nodded.

"Yeah, something like that."

"That was a pretty good strategy."

"Thanks."

I picked up my sandwich and took a bite out it.

"So, Leafa seemed pretty out of it when she got back before we logged out. Do you think she's okay?"

I shrugged.

"She said she was dealing with stuff IRL. Best to just leave it at that."

He nodded.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

Silence passed between us before he spoke again.

"So, what do you think of ALfheim Online?"

I shrugged again.

"It's alright, I guess. I never wanted to get back into VRMMOs, but I can't deny that ALO is somewhat interesting."

"Do you think you'll keep playing once we're done?"

I shook my head.

"I doubt it. All I want is to get Asuna out of there, if she is in there, which I think she is."

"Really? You don't have any positive feelings for the virtual world anymore?"

"I don't know what my feelings are. I'm glad that people want to try it and are enjoying it. But after what we went through, I just don't know."

He nodded.

"No, I get it. And I respect your opinion."

Silence passed between us once again.

"So, what are you going to do after ALfheim?" he asked.

"I don't know. I only have about another week until I go back to school. And if we haven't freed Asuna by then, my amount of free time could quickly decline."

"Do you think that it'll take that long?"

I shrugged.

"I don't know. I hope not. But I can't really say how long I think it'll take."

"Understandable."

We ate for the rest of the time in silence after that.

 _Sometime Later_

Klein and I finally left the café. It was somewhere close to two in the morning and I needed to get some sleep.

"Okay, let's get out of here." I said. "I need to get home and get some sleep if we're getting back on tomorrow."

"Yeah. I'll walk back home with you."

"Whatever."

We began walking down the sidewalk after that, in silence. We had walked down the sidewalk a fair length, before two tall men appeared in front of us. It looked like they were coming towards us and I didn't know what to do. That's when Klein gripped my shoulder and forced me to turn.

"I don't like the look of these guys." He said as he forced me down a dark alley to our left. "Let's cut through here and try to lose them."

"What's wrong with them?" I asked. "Is there no way that they're just average guys?"

"It's possible. But they remind me a lot of the guys that tried to mug me the other night."

A chill went down my spine as he said that.

"Well, I'm so glad that you're telling me this now!"

"Sorry!"

We continued walking down the alley and eventually, two other men appeared in front of us.

"Shit." Klein muttered.

"Let's go back." I urged him.

"Right." I nodded.

We both turned around and started walking back the way we had come. That's when, of course, the two guys that we had seen on the street appeared again.

"Damn it!" Klein cursed.

We both came to a complete stop now, Klein no longer holding onto my shoulder at this point. I turned to look back and to no surprise, the two guys that stepped into the alley with us were now directly behind us.

"What do we do?" I barely said out loud.

The two men ahead of and behind us came to a stop and for a few seconds, just remained there. Eventually, one of them spoke.

"You can either come with us quietly or you'll be taken by force. The choice is yours."

Both of us just stood there, not saying anything.

"You don't have long to decide." The man spoke again.

I finally decided to speak up.

"No way. We're not going with you." I muttered.

None of them moved for a few seconds. Finally, one of them spoke again.

"Okay. Have it your way, then."

He then reached forward and tried to grab my shoulder.

"Whoa, what the hell do you think you're doing?" I asked as I backed away from him.

He reached forward again, and I finally retaliated.

"Back off, man!" I exclaimed as I punched him in the jaw.

He stumbled backwards after that and now, all four of the men seemed angry. I felt one of them grab me from behind, the same thing happening to Klein.

"Are you going to help me, or not?!" I exclaimed as I looked at him.

Klein gave me a quick nod, before stomping on the guy's foot, the guy that was directly behind him. He then elbowed him in the stomach, too. I followed his example and stopped on the guy's foot as hard as I could. He let go and stepped backwards, grunting with pain. The two guys ahead of us began to approach again and I was the first to attack again. I kicked him in the stomach, sending him toppling over.

The guy behind me had recovered from his attack and was approaching again. I turned around and punched him in the jaw before he could touch me. Meanwhile, Klein pushed the guy in front of him into a dumpster. The guy that I had attacked first looked back at me with an angry look, as he checked his mouth for blood, even though I hadn't drawn any from him.

"You shouldn't have done that." He said, as he reached into his jacket for something.

And he brought out something that I wasn't expecting to see. It was a gun.

 _A gun? You've got to be kidding me!_

And you know what? He pointed it at me and pulled the trigger! Surprisingly enough however, I didn't feel anything except for a sting in my neck. I felt around, not expecting what I felt. I pulled something from my neck, and I realized what it was: It was a tranquilizer dart.

 _Did he seriously just tranquilize me?_

I fell down onto my knees as I continued to stare at the dart in my hand, as my vision progressively got more and more blurry. I quickly began to feel woozy and somewhat nauseous. I wasn't feeling to good and it was at that moment that I finally fell over, as Klein cried out my name.

 _?_

After it was clear that the target had been incapacitated, I spoke into the mouthpiece.

"Sir, the target has been tranquilized. We can bring him in now!"

I was met with nothing but silence on the other end.

"Sir?" I asked.

"Let them go." I finally got a response.

I was confused.

"Are you sure? We have them right now and we can bring them in!"

"Let them go now! That's an order!"

I stopped speaking as it began to rain again. I looked at the two guys in front of me, one of them passed out and the other begging him to wake up. I finally let out a sigh.

"If you say so, Sir." I said, before looking at my three partners. "Let's go!"

The four of us then ran out of the alley, leaving our targets alone in the rain.

 _Author's Note:_

* I know that this didn't happen in the anime nor the light novel or manga, but I thought it was different. So, what did you all think of this one?

* Do you guys think that Sachi was really _just_ curious? Or do you think she plans to dive into ALO? I'd like to hear your thoughts. Let me know your thoughts on that or anything I have forgotten to mention.

* Also, sorry again for the weird ending. I just wanted to do something different and I hope it wasn't different bad. I think that's going to do it for me. I'm going to go though, so have a fantastic day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 21): Awesome that you definitely will be adapting the Phantom Bullet, Excalibur, and Mother's Rosario arcs! NOTE: Fatal Bullet is the name of our Sword Art Online GGO video game, not the name of one of the arcs._

Thanks, Naruto. You know, I missed receiving your reviews! For a minute, I almost thought that you never got to reading my adaptation of Fairy Dance. Thanks for correcting me on the whole Fatal Bullet thing. I could have sworn that Phantom Bullet had another variation of its title, just like how Mother's Rosario is also known as Mother's Rosary.

Also, I forgot to mention that I may adapt the movie, Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale. In fact, I have it on Blu-ray. I just haven't found the time to watch it yet. But I will. Depending on how I like it, maybe I'll adapt it. But I've liked most of SAO so far, so I doubt that I won't adapt it. So, anyway, thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: After a day of recovering, Kirito and Klein dive back into ALfheim Online. Once back, he, Klein and Leafa form a plan to prevent a war between the races and it may work. That is, if he can survive a duel with a Salamander General.


	23. Chapter 23: General of the Blazing Flame

Chapter 23: General of the Blazing Flame

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Three! So, we're getting somewhat close to the end.

* I'm not sure what to say about this chapter, so I won't say anything. So, let's get on with the chapter!

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House – December 10_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Six Days Remaining_

I had been shot by a tranquilizer dart the night before last. And Klein told me that they just ran off after that. And I don't know what to think of that. Well, Klein told me that once I came to, anyway. I made him promise not to tell Sugu about what really happened. She thinks that we got attacked last night. She doesn't know that I got tranquilized. I never logged into ALO the previous day. I thought it would have been best to just rest for the day. I heard a knock at the door of my bedroom. I didn't even lift my hand from my face.

"Come in." I let out with a groan.

The door opened and I heard someone walk in.

"Are you doing okay?" Sugu asked.

I nodded.

"Yeah. Fantastic."

"Well, I'm heading off to school. Do you want me to get you anything on the way back?"

I shook my head without looking up at her.

"Are you sure?"

I nodded, once again without looking at her.

"Okay. Well, I'll see you later, then."

"Bye." I replied.

She left the room after that and I tried to go back to sleep.

 _Later That Day_

 _The Legrue Corridor, Legrue, ALfheim_

Klein and I were sitting on some benches within the town of Legrue, waiting for Leafa to show up.

"We didn't even show up yesterday!" he replied.

"Yep." I replied.

"Do you think she'll show up today?"

I shrugged.

"How should I know?"

He didn't say anything for a few seconds.

"Are you doing okay?"

I nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just more or less ticked off that I had to be absent for a whole day."

"You were tranquilized!" he practically exclaimed.

I turned to look at him with an irritated look on my face.

"No, I got food poisoning from that café that we went to! If we're going to come up with a lie, then we might as well stick to it!"

"Okay, okay, fine!"

"Okay, good. Thanks for not making this difficult."

"No problem."

Silence passed between us again for a few seconds before he spoke.

"Okay. So, if you got food poisoning, then how come I didn't?"

I let out a sigh.

"God, you are impossible."

He let out a chuckle, as I couldn't help but chuckle myself.

"Hey." A voice said from behind us.

Both of us turned around to see Leafa standing behind the bench that we were sitting on.

"Where were you guys yesterday?" she asked as she put her hands on her hips.

I let out a sigh.

"Sorry." I replied. "Klein and I went out for a late night snack the other night. And I may have gotten food poisoning."

Leafa's eyes filled with surprise.

"Oh. Um, I'm sorry. I didn't realize what you were going through. That can't have been good."

I shook my head.

"Nope. It was _horrible_! I was up all night, vomiting. Definitely one of the worst nights of my life."

"That's understandable. Well, look, I hate to say it, but we need to get moving."

"What?" I asked with a confused tone. "Why?"

"Can we just go? I'll explain on the way."

She then ran off after finishing her sentence. As we stood there, Klein eventually looked at me.

"I think we should follow her." He said.

I rolled my eyes as I turned to look at him.

"You think?" I asked. "Let's go."

I began running after Leafa, leaving Klein no choice but to follow. Leafa was moving fast. She left town before I could even get a word out.

"Leafa!" I exclaimed as I reached my hand forward. "Can't you just stop and explain what this is about?!"

She finally came to a stop and so did I, Klein following suit once he caught up a few seconds later. She turned to look at us with a teary look on her face.

"Kirito, Klein, I'm sorry." She said.

I stared at her with confusion.

"Sorry? Sorry about what?"

"There's something I have to take care of right away. If I had time to explain, believe me, I would." She said, before turning to look at us. "But I can't. And I don't think I'll be coming back here, either."

I looked at her with a confused look still, but eventually I smiled.

"Well, I guess you'll just have to explain on the way, then." I replied.

"What?" she and Klein asked in unison.

"It'll take longer for us to get out of here because we can't fly." I said as I moved past Leafa. "Better get a move on!"

"Hey, hold on a second!" she said.

I turned back to look at her.

"Yeah?"

"What about the World Tree?"

I scoffed.

"What about it?" I asked.

Klein let out a gasp of surprise, as did Leafa.

"You're just gonna give up on the quest?" he asked. "Just like that?"

"No, not giving up. More like postponing. Leafa's done so much for us and we've barely done anything in return. So, whatever's going on, I have the urge to help out."

They just looked at me.

"So, what if I have to postpone? We still have time!"

Leafa continued to look at me and eventually smiled.

"Okay. Let's get going, then."

 _A Few Minutes Later_

The three of us had taken off out of the town. As we ran out of the gates, Leafa spoke.

"Forty minutes from now, in the Valley of the Butterflies, the leaders of the Sylphs and the Cait Sith are going to have a meeting."

"What's the big deal about some meeting?" Klein asked.

Leafa gave him a irritated look as we kept running.

"While Klein is going to ask dumb questions, do you mind if I ask a couple good questions before we get there?"

"Hey man, that was uncalled for!" he exclaimed as Leafa chuckled.

"Go ahead."

"If the Salamanders attack the Sylphs and the Cait Siths, what are they gonna get out of it?"

"For one, they'd stop the alliance from happening. And if the Cait Sith find out that their leader died because of Sylph turned-traitor, they'd be pretty pissed, wouldn't they?"

"Super pissed."

"It'd be a good way to start a war between the Cait Sith and the Sylphs, that's for sure."

"Yeah, that sounds bad!" Klein chimed in.

"No, duh!" she exclaimed. "That's why we have to do something about it!"

"What else would happen?" I asked.

"It would be a great way to get rich! If you take out the leader of a territory, you get thirty percent of its money. You can invade its hometown for ten days and charge whatever tax you want."

"Wait, really?" Klein asked.

"Seriously! Would I lie to you guys? I appreciate it, but this isn't your guys' problem, it's a Sylph problem! You don't have any reason to get involved and risk your life over it! If we go to the meeting, there's a big chance that we won't make it back alive. And we'll probably have to start all over from Sylvain again."

She then came to a stop behind me.

"However, this could work for you guys."

Klein and I both stopped running now and turned to look at Leafa.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You guys want to get to the top of the World Tree. So, you might be better off working with the Salamanders."

I couldn't help but gasp as Leafa said that.

"If they can pull this off, it'll give them the power and resources they need to make an attempt at the World Tree. And since you're a Spriggan and you're a Salamander, albeit one who is a renegade, they might hire you as mercenaries. So, if you wanted to kill me, you could. I wouldn't hold it against you."

She then closed her eyes as if she were waiting for us to make a move against her. I turned to look at Klein as he looked at me, mouthing the word "no" to me. I rolled my eyes, annoyed by the fact that he thought I may entertain this idea. I looked back at Leafa.

"It's just a game in the end. So, anything goes. Right?" I said. "If you want to kill, you kill. If you want to steal, you steal."

She let out a grunt, but said nothing.

"Do you hear yourself right now?" Klein asked.

I ignored him.

"A lot of people think like that. More than I care to know. And in a way, I get it. Hell, I could have ended up like that if one thing hadn't happened."

I began walking towards her.

"But none of that's true. In a virtual world, there are things that you have to protect because it's a virtual world. Someone special taught me that."

The look on Leafa's face eased.

"If you give in to your urges and impulses in here, it's going to change who you are in the real world."

"The player and the character are one and the same." Klein added.

I looked at him but said nothing. I turned back to Leafa and continued speaking.

"You're a good person, Leafa. And I want to be your friend. So, it doesn't matter what the reason is. There's no way in hell that I'd ever attack a friend for my own benefit. I couldn't live with myself if I did."

She opened her eyes with a look of surprise on my face.

"Kirito, I..."

I chuckled at her loss for words. She eventually folded her hands and placed them on her chest as she continued to look at me.

"Thank you."

Now it was my turn to be flustered and at a loss for words.

"I sounded pretentious, didn't I?" I asked as I nervously ran my hand through my hair.

Klein chuckled.

"That's a bad habit of you, dude."

"Shut up!"

I turned back to Leafa.

"Anyway, sorry about that."

She just shook her head with a smile on her face.

"Uh-uh, that was pretty cool of you to say."

As we stood there, it dawned on me.

"Crap! We're wasting time, aren't we? We can't just be standing around!"

"You're probably right."

"No duh I'm right! We have to move. Yui, lead the way!"

The pixie popped out of my coat pocket and appeared in front of us.

"You got it, Daddy!" she replied.

I turned to look at Klein and Leafa.

"Klein, Leafa, you may want to take each other's hands."

Of course, Klein rushed to grab Leafa's hand, much to her surprise and embarrassment.

"What?!" she exclaimed. "Why?!"

I then grabbed Leafa's free hand.

"What is going on?!"

"You guys may want to hold on tight!"

I then kicked off of the ground and began running forward with amazing speed, causing both Klein and Leafa to scream behind me. As I ran forward, I began to notice monsters spawning ahead of us.

"Monsters!" Leafa blurted out.

"Yeah, like, watch out!" Klein chimed in.

I ran right past them without being hit once, while they both screamed the whole way. Ahead of me, I began to see a light.

"There's the exit!" I exclaimed.

After leaving the tunnel system, we emerged on the other side, far above the ground. My wings appeared as I began to concentrate. However, before I could try to fly, the weight of my two friends began to pull me down. I looked down, to see that neither of them had their wings out.

"Come on, you guys!" I exclaimed as I struggled to keep us airborne. "You have to fly if you want us to get anywhere!"

They finally got the memo and their wings appeared. Leafa was the first to calm down, while Klein practically continued to shiver as he flew alongside us. I chuckled as I looked at Klein.

"How you doing over there, buddy?" I called.

He finally snapped out of his daze and looked at me.

"Don't you ever do that without a warning ever again!"

"Oh, come on, you big baby!"

I looked back with a chuckle as I saw the monsters that had been chasing us fall off the cliff to their deaths. Leafa finally looked at me.

"Are you trying to get us killed?!" she exclaimed.

I couldn't help but laugh.

"No, I'm just trying to save us some time."

"You and your God damn shortcuts." Klein chimed in.

"You said it." she replied.

Leafa let out a gasp and once I turned to see what she was looking at, I let out a gasp, too. The World Tree was directly ahead of us. As we flew closer to it, I finally came to a realization.

"Hold on a sec." I said as I turned to look at Leafa. "Do you even know where this meeting is taking place?"

"Yeah, I'll check."

She swiped down with her hand and opened her menu. After a second or two of scrolling and tapping buttons, she pointed ahead of us.

"Northwest, inside that mountain."

"How much time do we have?" Klein asked.

"Twenty minutes."

"Then we should get there!"

I nodded in agreement.

"We need to go faster."

The three of us dashed forward.

 _Sometime Later_

 _ALfheim, Neutral Territory – The Valley of the Butterflies_

"I really wish we could go faster." I replied. "At this rate, we won't beat the Salamanders!"

"I know." Leafa said. "Even if we can warn them, it doesn't mean that we can get the commanders out in time!"

"You guys need to have hope!" Klein chimed in.

I scoffed.

"Thanks, I'll take that under consideration."

"We might just end up dying with them all in battle." Leafa spoke once more.

Yui popped her head out from my coat pocket.

"I'm getting player readings! Sixty eight in a flying formation!" she said. "From what I can tell, it could be the Salamander attack force!"

I let out a light gasp at what Yui said. And I saw it. The formation that she was talking about, ahead and below us.

"There are fourteen more players on the plateau!" she continued. "Most likely, they're the diplomats for the Sylphs and Cait Siths! Only fifty seconds until they make contact!"

"We didn't make it after all. Thanks for trying you guys. This is far enough." Leafa said with defeat. "I'm going to try and save Sakuya. Get out of here and head for the World Tree! We didn't get to hang out for long, but it was fun! I hope we meet again someday!"

I continued flying forward with a determined look on my face.

"Sorry, but running away from a fight isn't really my style." I replied.

Leafa let out a light gasp as I said this. As we continued to fly forward, I noticed that the party below must have finally noticed the Salamanders, as they were all getting up from the table that they sat at. I turned to look at Klein.

"Klein, follow Leafa's lead."

He looked at me with surprise.

"Me? What about you?!"

"Don't worry about me."

I then burst forward towards the ground. I eventually landed on the ground, facing the horde of Salamanders ahead of me. I took a breath before I spoke.

"Salamanders, stand down!"

They all looked confused as they talked amongst themselves, but it didn't look like they were going to stand down.

 _Leafa_

As Kirito did his thing, Klein stayed with me as I moved to speak with Sakuya.

"Sakuya!" I exclaimed.

The Sylph leader jumped and eventually turned to look at me.

"Leafa? What are you doing here?" she asked.

Then, a few seconds later, I noticed the look in her eyes change. She suddenly drew her weapon.

"And why have you brought a Salamander here?" she exclaimed.

"Easy!" I said as I put both of my hands out. "He's not with them! He's a rogue! He's with me and a friend of mine!"

I turned back to look at Klein, who was smiling and waving with his eyes closed. Sakuya and the Cait Sith leader, Alicia Rue, didn't look entirely convinced, but eventually they stood down.

"Look, it's not going to be easy to explain. See that guy out there?" I asked as I turned to face Kirito. "Believe it or not, the fates of our races depend on his next move."

She stared at him with me and eventually spoke a few seconds later.

"You have got to be kidding."

 _Kirito_

"I want to talk to your commander!" I exclaimed.

After a few seconds passed, a Salamander moved forward and the others parted so he could come to the front of the formation. He stood out from the rest of them, being the only one who wasn't wearing a helmet. He had spiky red hair, which seemed to be a signature trait of the Salamanders. I flew up to meet him. Once I got up to him, he spoke before I could.

"What the hell is a Spriggan like you doing here?"

I stared up at him, still with a determined look on my face.

"I'm gonna kill you no matter what you answer." He continued. "But since you're brave enough to face me, I might as well hear you out."

I had to come up with a pretty good lie pretty fast, so I went with what came to my mind the quickest.

"My name is Kirito. I'm an ambassador for the Spriggan-Undine alliance." I spoke. "Since you're on the offensive today, I'm assuming you want to wage a full-on war between all our races."

 _Klein_

As Kirito spoke, there were confused replies among us. Sakuya looked at Leafa, who just shook her head as if she had no idea what was happening either.

"Yo, Leafa!" I whispered as I stepped closer to her. "Who are the Undines?"

She only slightly turned her head to face me.

"They're another race of fairies." She said. "They're the ones I mentioned the other night, the only ones who can handle high level water monsters."

"Oh, okay. Thanks!"

"Sure."

We all turned to continue watching Kirito.

 _Kirito_

"The Undines are allied with the Spriggans, huh?" the Salamander asked, before he smirked. "And you're supposed to be their ambassador, but you've come here without a guard?"

 _I didn't need a guard, no way in hell._

"Yeah, that's right! So, what? I was sent here to negotiate trade terms with the Sylphs and the Cait Siths." I continued. "But if you interrupt our talk, you're going to get to feel some serious hurt! All of our races are gonna team up and we'll bring the fight straight to the Salamanders."

The Salamander's smirk had long since vanished from his face. However, he eventually smirked again, as if he didn't believe what I had said.

"You're kidding, right? You're all alone and you've got crappy gear!"

I sneered in return to what he said.

"It doesn't matter if I have crappy gear. I can still do some damage if I know what I'm doing."

"Oh, now you're begging me to kick your ass." He said as he pulled his sword off of his back. "There's no way that you could be anyone's ambassador. I don't believe it!"

He drew his sword and held it out in front of him.

"If you can survive my attacks for thirty seconds, then I will believe you are who you say you are."

I flew upwards towards him as I drew my own sword.

"Gee, thanks. That's mighty generous."

 _Leafa_

"This is bad." Sakuya said next to me.

I turned to look at her.

"Why?" I asked.

"Do you see that Salamander's sword?" she asked. "It's the Demon Sword Gram. You need a Two-Handed Sword Skill of 950 to equip it."

"N-nine hundred fifty?!" I stuttered.

"Seriously?!" Klein exclaimed.

Sakuya turned to look at him but said nothing and eventually turned back to look at Kirito and the Salamander up above.

"Yes. And there's only one person who can use it, General Eugene. Have you heard of him?"

"Yeah, I know the name."

"He's the younger brother of Mortimer, the leader of the Salamanders. They're brothers in real life, too."

"Wait," Klein spoke. "How do you know that?"

Sakuya didn't respond to my Salamander friend.

"Mortimer's a brilliant strategist. But in terms of sheer power, they say that Eugene is the game's strongest player."

"Oh, no. He's the strongest player?"

I gazed up at the Spriggan with worry.

"Kirito..."

 _Kirito_

Seconds before our fight started, the sun began to shine down on us. I narrowed my eyes at the Salamander and that's when he charged me. He let out a yell as he sailed towards me and brought his sword down on me. I tried to parry his strike, but I was surprised when I saw a purple beam of flight pass through my own sword. Once it made contact with me, I was blasted backwards into a cliff.

 _Leafa_

"What was that?!" Klein and I exclaimed in unison.

"The Ethereal Shift." Alicia Rue replied. "It's the sword's bonus skill. Whenever someone tries to block it with a sword or a shield, the Demonic Sword Gram can phase right through it!"

"Really?!" I asked.

"No way!" Klein replied. "That's insane!"

Once again, no one acknowledged him. He finally let out a sigh.

"I'm just going to stop talking." He said. "No one seems to know I exist."

"Best thing I've heard you say all day." I replied.

 _Kirito_

Once I recovered from the Salamander's attack, I flew back to him with a burst of speed. I struck his sword with mine, sending us back through the air. He chuckled as I did this.

"I can't believe you're not dead!" he replied.

"What the hell kind of attack was that?!" I exclaimed as I pushed him back.

I moved forward and tried to land two strikes on him, however he dodged them and soared upwards, driving his sword downwards. I flipped out of the way and ended up above him. Before I could get a strike off, he managed to hit me again. I flew backwards away from him and looked at the red mark that was now on my shoulder.

"Damn, he's good!" I muttered as I looked at him. "Hey, big red! I think your thirty seconds are up by now!"

He looked back at me with a sneer.

"I changed my mind." He said. "I've decided to kill you anyway!"

 _Why you backstabbing bastard..._

"Now you have to survive till I do!"

"Yeah, that figures! But I won't go down that easy!"

I soared forward and we continued fighting.

 _Leafa_

"This won't end well." Sakuya spoke again. "They both seem like equally skilled fighters, but Eugene's weapon is far superior!"

I couldn't help but stare up at Kirito with a hopeful smile on my face.

"He can do it." I replied. "Kirito can beat him, I know it!"

 _Kirito_

I continued delivering strike after strike, only for the Salamander to parry my every attack. I veered upwards and brought my sword down with a yell, finally breaking his block. He brought his sword upwards and cut me in four different places after that. I grunted as I dodged his next attack and flew backwards. He flew forwards after me as I tried to gain enough ground to buy me enough time to utter an incantation.

I summoned several clouds of black smoke, causing the Salamander to get lost in them. The black cloud of smoke traveled down to the ground, engulfing the area where the conference used to take place. I flew down there and pulled Leafa's sword from her waist.

"I need to borrow this." I said, both surprising and scaring her.

I heard her say my name, but I didn't respond. I couldn't afford the waste the time.

"A few seconds!" the Salamander exclaimed from above. "That's all you've bought!"

After that, he cleared the smoke in the area. The time that I had bought myself had run out.

 _Leafa_

After Kirito took my sword, the smoke cleared. And yet, he was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, where'd he go?" Alicia Rue asked.

"Do you think he ran away?" one of the Cait Siths asked.

"Of course, he didn't!" I exclaimed.

 _As long as I'm alive, I'm not going to let anyone in my party die! I won't let that happen again!_

Kirito's words to me the other day suddenly flashed within my head. I closed my eyes and put my hands together beneath my chin.

 _Kirito would never run away and leave us!_

I heard someone step up to me and put their hand on my shoulder.

"It's okay, Leafa. Kirito isn't the type to just run away!" Klein said. "He's just planning something!"

I nodded.

"I know."

 _Kirito_

After I had gotten Leafa's sword, I flew directly upwards, towards the sky. And after a few seconds, I flew back down towards the Salamander. He noticed me before I could get close to me and flew up to meet me. He tried to strike me with his sword again, but this time I counterattacked with Leafa's sword.

I went into a berserker rage, yelling as I landed several cuts on his body. He screamed as a ball of hot air formed around him, trying to block my attack. The ball practically exploded, sending us in opposite directions.

"Die!" he exclaimed as he flew back towards me, barely giving me any time to recover.

I dodged his attack and greatly surprised him by stabbing him with both swords, sending us both towards the ground. He let out a scream as his HP rapidly fell. As he rapidly lost HP, he tried to hit me again with his sword. I pulled my sword out of his abdomen and began cutting across his torso as a counterattack.

I finally pulled Leafa's sword out and allowed him to fall. I then flew towards him and landed the final strike using Leafa's sword. I created a long red long, going diagonally from his shoulder to his crotch. He exploded into flames after that and his remain light slowly floated towards the ground. I felt exhausted after that, but my work wasn't over.

 _Leafa_

Everyone seemed to be in shock after General Eugene's defeat at the hands of Kirito. I couldn't help but smile, knowing that he had won. Eventually, Sakuya and Alicia Rue spoke.

"Splendid! Marvelous!"

"That was the most amazing fight ever!"

After they acknowledged what had just happened, the remaining Sylphs and Cait Siths began to cheer as well.

 _Kirito_

 _Several Minutes Later_

Once all of the attention had died down, Sakuya, the Sylph leader, worked on reviving General Eugene, the Salamander I had just killed, so that we could talk with him. Eventually the Salamander appeared on his knees once the process was complete and stood up to face us. He began stretching his arm before he turned to face me.

"You're an excellent fighter." He said as he put his hands on his hips. "In fact, you're the most powerful player I've ever seen. Well done."

I was surprised that General Eugene was being honorable about his defeat. He didn't seem like the type of guy to do that.

"You're not so bad yourself!" I replied as I crossed my arms over my chest.

"I didn't know that the Spriggans like you had someone in their ranks. This world is a bigger place than I thought."

He seemed to eye something behind me.

"And you're traveling with a fellow Salamander of mine?"

I turned to look at Klein.

"Actually, I'm a rogue." Klein replied with a smile as he shut his eyes. "I wouldn't fit in all that well with your race, dude."

General Eugene let out a grunt.

"Well, I'd like you to know that had I won that confrontation, I would have requested that you two part ways. Your fate would have literally depended on me."

Klein chuckled in return.

"Well, I'm glad Kirito won, then. Because there's no way that I would have gone with you."

Eugene narrowed his eyes.

"You wouldn't have had a choice."

Klein's smile disappeared.

"Hey man, now what do you..."

I got in between the two Salamanders before a fight could start.

"Hey, let's just calm down a little bit." I spoke before I looked at Eugene. "For the record, Klein is my companion, just as much as Leafa, that Sylph over there, is. He's not for sale. I would hope that you could respect that!"

He didn't say a word.

"So, are we cool?"

Before he could say something, another Salamander approached.

"Eugene, may I have a word?" he asked.

"Kagemune?" Eugene spoke without looking at the Salamander in question. "What is it?"

I heard Leafa let out a light gasp from behind me.

"Him again." She muttered.

"You might find this interesting." Kagemune spoke once more. "You know how my party was wiped out a few days ago?"

"So?"

"Well, this Spriggan? He's the guy that took out everyone. Although he did most of the work, that rogue Salamander helped out. And they were traveling with an Undine."

Leafa let out a gasp once again. I narrowed my eyes as I looked at Kagemune, my smile gone now.

 _Why would he lie right to his commander's face?_

Nevertheless, it seemed that General Eugene was convinced.

"Hmm. Interesting. I guess I have to believe you. But just for the record, the last thing our leader and I want is to go to war with the Spriggans and Undines. Very well. We'll withdraw. For now. But I'll be looking forward to fighting you again. One day."

My smile returned to my face.

"You can count on it." I replied, before we bumped fists.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

A few minutes passed and the Salamanders departed.

"I guess some Salamanders can be cool after all." I replied.

"Yeah, man!" Klein chimed in. "Totally!"

I scoffed.

"You don't count."

He let out a groan.

"Now come on! Was that really necessary?"

I just chuckled and said nothing after that.

"You really are insane, you know that?" Leafa eventually asked.

I turned to face her.

"Yeah, I get that a lot." I replied.

Leafa only chuckled in response. Just then, someone cleared their throat, getting our attention. We turned to see Sakuya looking at us, while the Cait Sith leader, Alicia Rue, stood next to her, with her arms folded behind her head as if she were reclining in a chair.

"Excuse me, but could either of you three explain what's going on?" she asked.

I just blinked and didn't speak for a second. A look of irritation spread across Sakuya's face.

"Well? Are you going to explain or not?"

I finally recovered from my silence and cleared my throat.

"Well, um, where to begin?" I asked.

 _Sometime Later_

It was now sunset. After some time of us explaining the events of the last couple days, we were all up to speed.

"I see." Sakuya replied as she kept her fingers on her chin. "I could tell that there was something off about Sigurd's attitude recently. He seemed so irritated."

"Irritated?" Leafa asked. "About what?"

Sakuya looked at her.

"My guess? He was dissatisfied with the state of things. That in terms of power, he couldn't accept that we've fallen behind the Salamanders. Power is very important to a man like Sigurd. And not just for his abilities and character stats, but also as a player. He craves power."

"Yeah, but even so, why would he turn spy for the Salamanders?"

"It must have something to do with the 5.0 update that's going to be released soon. I heard a rumor that they'll be putting in a reincarnation system."

"Reincarnation system?" Klein asked.

I was curious as well, so I spoke up now.

"Yeah, what's that about?"

However, we didn't get an explanation. Instead, Leafa let out a gasp.

"No way! Then..."

"I'm sure Mortimer made him an offer. "Bring me the head of your leader, and I'll reincarnate you as a Salamander"."

I put my hand to my chin as well.

"That makes sense." Klein muttered next to me.

"Yeah." I muttered. "So, what happens now?"

"What will you do, Sakuya?" Leafa asked before she could answer me.

She closed her eyes and let out a small grunt before opening them again.

"Rue, have you raised your Dark-Magic Skill yet?" she asked.

"Mmm-Hmm!" Rue let out an enthusiastic grunt.

Sakuya turned to face her.

"Open a Moonlight Mirror to Sigurd." She said.

Rue nodded, closed her eyes and began to concentrate. She began to chant a few foreign verses and eventually, a dome of darkness formed over us. Eventually, an oval formation appeared, and we began to see something in it. After a few more seconds passed, we could clearly see Sigurd sitting in his quarters I assumed, with an alcoholic drink in his hand. Sakuya moved forward and addressed the Sylph player.

"Sigurd."

Sigurd suddenly jumped up, dropping the drink and spilling it onto the floor.

"S-Sakuya?!" he exclaimed as he put his hands on his desk.

"Nice to see you, too. Unfortunately, I'm still alive."

"How? I... I... I... I mean, how was the meeting?"

"It went very well. There's still the matter of signing the treaty, though."

He let out a grunt.

"But anyway, he had an unexpected guest."

"W... What guest?"

"His name is General Eugene and he sends his regards."

Sigurd looked shocked. He then must have seen us in the background.

"Leafa... So, that's it! Those incompetent lizards!"

A smirk came to his face now.

"Well? It's your move now, Sakuya. Are you gonna fine me? Or maybe you want to take away my command. If so, without me running your military, your rule won't last very long."

He turned away from the Moonlight Mirror.

"Actually, I was thinking of granting the request you gave them. Since you can't stand being a Sylph, you're free to go."

He turned back around with a shocked, angry expression visible on his face.

"Wait, what?"

Without saying another word, Sakuya opened her menu and pressed a few buttons. I then saw an alert appear for Sigurd on his side of the Mirror.

"Wait, are you crazy?! Me? You're banishing me?!"

"I'm letting you live to wander the Neutral Territory as a renegade. With any luck, you'll find something there to occupy your precious time."

Sigurd looked at us with anger, before he charged forward.

"You bi..."

Before Sigurd to finish his sentence, the Moonlight Mirror closed. Sakuya turned to Rue and she stopped focusing. After that, the dome of darkness dissipated, eventually disappearing along with the mirror. We all stood there in silence, before Leafa eventually spoke.

"Sakuya?"

She turned to look at her.

"Thank you for saving us, Leafa. You've no idea how grateful I am to have you around."

"Oh, well, I didn't really do anything."

I walked up behind Leafa and clapped her on her back.

"That's nonsense!" I said. "If you hadn't told us about what was happening, we wouldn't be standing here talking right now!"

Leafa didn't say anything in return, but continued talking to Sakuya.

"Anyway, if you want to thank someone, thank Kirito."

Sakuya looked at me now.

"She's right. Whoever you are, you have my thanks."

Rue spoke next.

"Hey handsome, about this Spriggan-Undine business, you aren't, are you?"

I just stared back with surprise before I spoke. Leafa looked back with me with an uncertain look. They were all looking at me. Sakuya with the same uncertain look and Rue, with a sly look on her face. I finally let out a sigh, before smiling and putting my hands on my hips.

"Yeah, that was a big, fat lie! I was bluffing, conning! You know, negotiating?"

Klein chuckled.

"Kirito, you sly dog."

Both Sakuya and Rue looked surprised. Eventually Sakuya put her hand on her forehead and chuckled, while Rue just smiled again.

"Oh God, you must be insane." She said. "You'd have to be to make up all that stuff at the last minute."

I continued talking with a smile on my face.

"Yeah, but it worked, didn't it? Whenever I'm dealt a bad hand, I always raise the pot!"

Rue approached now, still with a smile on her face.

"You know, for a big, fat, liar, you're pretty freaking strong, handsome!"

She then rubbed herself up against me.

"Like the MVP of Spriggans! Are you their secret weapon?"

I got slightly uncomfortable as she rubbed herself against me, but I eventually smiled again.

"Nah, of course not! All I am is your friendly neighborhood mercenary!"

She stepped back from me and began to laugh. She then wrapped her arms around me and pulled me close so that her chest was pressing up against my arm.

"I like the wandering type. Have you ever thought about being a merc for the Cait Sith? You'll get three meals a day, plus a snack and a nap!"

I thought I heard Leafa let out a gasp. Apparently Sakuya felt jealous, because now she was doing the same thing that Rue was doing. She had wrapped her arms around my free arm and pressed her chest up against my arm.

"So, Kirito. I was thinking, how about we get to know each other a little better? I know a cute little pub in Sylvain. My treat?"

"Wait..." Leafa spoke but she never got the chance to finish.

"Ah, come on, Sakuya!" Rue complained. "That's not fair! You're totally seducing him with those things!"

"I'm seducing him?! If you were any closer to him, he'd be wearing you!"

I was feeling really uncomfortable right now and had now idea what to say. I let out a weak chuckle as I closed my eyes. Suddenly I felt something grab me from behind and I turned my head, surprised to see Leafa standing there.

"Will you two cut it out?! For your information, he's my..."

Her eyes then snapped open and she seemed to lose her train of thought.

"I mean he's... Mmm... Uh..."

"What?" I asked as I looked at her.

"He's my... uh, never mind."

She shrunk back after that and didn't say anything else. I then turned back to Sakuya and Rue with a smile on my face.

"Look, I appreciate the offers, really. But the thing is, she promised to take my friend and I to the World Tree. So, sorry."

The two of them let go of me at this point.

"Really? Oh, well." Sakuya replied. "That is a shame. Are you going there for sightseeing, Leafa? Or what?"

Leafa looked back at them and eventually spoke.

"I'm leaving the Sylphs. Or planning on it, anyway. But I want to return to Sylvain at some point. I just don't know when that's going to be."

"Not a problem, I understand. Just be sure to come see me on the way back, okay? And bring your friend."

"On the way back, stop by my place!" Rue chimed in. "We'll throw you a party!"

Leafa nodded.

"Hey, what about me?!" Klein exclaimed.

"What about you?" I asked as I turned to look at him.

"Come on, Kirito! Help a guy out! You're like a literal chick magnet! You have Leafa, Sakuya and Rue..."

He began counting on his fingers as if he was thinking about every girl I've ever known, but I stopped him.

"Not another word, Klein."

 _A Few Minutes Later_

A few minutes passed and the Sylphs and Cait Siths were getting ready to leave.

"Thank you so much for coming today, Leafa, Kirito." Sakuya replied as she and Rue bowed.

Klein grunted behind me.

"Sure, thank them. No one _ever_ thanks the womanizer!"

"If you hadn't been here to stop them, the Salamanders would have become more powerful than ever." She continued, ignoring what Klein said. "I'd like to pay you back somehow."

"Oh no, it was nothing." I said as I put my hand on the back of my neck.

"Hey Sakuya, Alicia," Leafa spoke again. "Wasn't the point of you guys getting together to make an attempt on the World Tree?"

"Ultimately, yes. That was our goal." Sakuya replied.

"If you're okay with it and if it's no trouble, we'd like to go with you. We're kind of in a hurry to get there, though."

Sakuya and Rue looked at us with surprise. They both looked at each other as if they were thinking the same thing. Eventually, Sakuya turned back to us with a smile on her face.

"I can't see why not." She said. "In fact, the truth is we'd be happy to have you along. But why are you in such a hurry to get there?"

I let out a sigh and stepped forward.

"They're not the one's in a hurry. I'm the one who has to get to the top of the tree and as soon as I can." I said. "I think someone I know is up there, waiting for me."

Sakuya put her hand to her chin again.

"Hmm. Is it Oberon The Fairy King?"

 _There's that name again!_

I turned to Klein and the look in his eyes told me that he was having the same thoughts.

"No, it's not him." I said as I turned back to them. "It's someone I can't reach in the real world right now. But in here, I may be able to reach them. So, I have to try, and I can't give up, no matter what."

"We want to help, but storming the Tree is going to take some time to set up." Rue replied. "We've got to gear up the raiding party and stuff. And that'll take us more than a day."

I stared back at them, suddenly feeling as though I would cry, but I didn't allow myself to.

"I see." I said, my voice practically trembling. "Never mind, then. I don't want to raid the Tree like you. I just want to get to the base of it as soon as possible."

I shut my eyes. I eventually opened them again and smiled.

"Don't worry, it's cool. We'll figure it out! Oh, by the way..."

I opened my menu and scanned through my inventory. I equipped a decently-sized sack of Yuld and walked over to Rue.

"Here. Maybe this'll help you with your raid."

She took it with a smile on her face and let out a happy murmur, but was surprised when she nearly dropped it. She picked it up with both hands this time and looked down at it.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed before turning to Sakuya. "Sakuya, look! Check it out!"

Sakuya let out a questioning hum as she walked over to Rue and looked at the sack as well. She let out a gasp once she saw the contents.

"A... A hundred thousand pieces of mithril Yuld?!" she exclaimed. "You don't want it? You could build a castle on prime land with this!"

I just shrugged.

"No, it's yours. I don't need it anymore."

"You are so awesome." Rue replied as she looked at me. "With this bag of loot, we have just about enough for new gear!"

"We'll get ready as fast as we can! When we're set to go, we'll message you, okay?"

"Yeah." I replied. "You got it."

 _A Few Minutes Later_

The Sylphs and Cait Siths were now departing from the plateau.

"Thanks, guys!" Rue called from the sky above. "We'll be seein' ya!"

A few seconds later, the Sylphs and Cait Siths were gone, leaving the three of us alone again. Leafa stepped closer to us.

"I don't know about you guys," she spoke. "but I can't believe you pulled that off."

Klein just chuckled in response.

"Are you kidding? This isn't the first time that Kirito's had to do something like that!"

"Ahem." I turned to face him with an annoyed expression.

When he saw the look on my face, he put his hands up and backed away, mouthing the word "sorry" as he did. I turned back around and smiled to myself, while my two partners remained in silence. I heard Leafa eventually chuckle to herself as she leaned against me. Suddenly, Yui popped her head out from my coat pocket.

"Oh, honestly!" she exclaimed with annoyance. "I thought I told you, no more flirting, Daddy!"

Leafa backed up with shock and Klein began laughing as Yui flew up to my shoulder, looking at me with anger.

"I wasn't flirting with anyone!" I exclaimed. "What are you talking about?!"

"When those girls were clinging to you, I noticed that your heartbeat increased!"

"I'm a guy! That's what happens when girls get too close!"

"Seriously."

"What about me?" Leafa spoke up. "I'm a girl. Isn't that a problem?"

I turned to look at her.

"No, you seem pretty safe to me, Leafa." Yui replied.

"What do you mean "safe"?" she asked with surprise.

Yui and I both began to think. I finally smiled and spoke.

"I think what she means is that most of the time, you don't really seem much like a girl."

"Okay, woah!" she said as she approached me, reaching for her sword. "Say that again, I dare you!"

"Oh, ho, ho!" Klein continued dying from laughter in the background.

I put up my hands in defense.

"No, like, you're easy to get along with!" I said as I took a small step back. "I meant it in a good way! I swear!"

Before Leafa, Klein or Yui could say anything else, I heard someone make a whooping sound from above us.

"Huh?" I asked as I looked up.

I saw a silhouette against the sunset up in the sky and I noticed that it was diving towards us.

"Um, should we start running?" Klein asked.

I didn't say anything. Eventually, as the silhouette got closer to us, I noticed that it was another player. A female Spriggan, in fact and she was wearing a medium-length cloak that reached her knees, with its hood up. She eventually landed in front of us, seeming visibly excited.

"Ah, man!" she said as she put her hood down. "Don't tell me I missed the party! Where did everybody go?"

With her hood down now, we could see her face. She had short length black hair, for a girl that is, and she also had blue eyes. I also couldn't help but feel that I had heard her voice somewhere else.

"Um, Miss?" I asked. "Do we know you?"

She rolled her eyes and took my hands, which surprised both me and Yui.

"Hello, Kirito?" she said, still with a smile on her face. "It's me, Sachi!"

Suddenly everything became clear. The reason that Sachi asked what race I played as the other night. She wanted to be the same race as me, to idolize me! And that's why I recognized her voice! Before I could do anything, Yui and Leafa both spoke up in unison.

"Who are you?"

"Sachi? As in..."

I forced the Spriggan girl in question to let go of my hands so I could turn to look at Leafa.

"No, she's just like us! We're only them in inspiration!"

Leafa just stared at me, as if she didn't buy it this time.

"Inspiration?" Sachi asked.

I had to think of a way to explain this to her without blowing our cover.

"Um, she's inspired by the character from The Death Game! She's not the real thing!"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the look on Sachi's face change. Either she got the memo, or she was confused.

"Oh, yeah, yeah! We're totally not the real thing!"

I felt the urge to take a breath of relief, but I didn't. I turned back to Leafa, to see that she still didn't look convinced.

"Leafa?" I asked.

She continued staring at Sachi and eventually spoke.

"You even sound like the real thing..." she whispered, half out loud and half to herself.

"What?"

She blushed and seemed to realize what she just said.

"Oh, um, nothing!"

I narrowed my eyes at her, now suspicious of her. She sighed.

"Whatever you say." She said at last.

I turned and noticed that Yui was still staring at Sachi.

"Who are you?" she asked again.

That's when Yui's situation dawned on me again.

"Oh, that's right. You wouldn't remember her. Yui, Sachi was one of my friends. You knew her from before."

She turned to look at me.

"I did?" she asked, before turning back to Sachi. "I did?"

Sachi just stood there motionless and eventually nodded without a word.

"You know that you can talk, right?" I asked.

She continued standing there, before she started laughing.

"Yeah, sorry. I just don't know what to say!"

Klein finally stepped forward and spoke himself.

"So, what took you so long, Sachi?" he asked.

Sachi looked back at him with an irritated look, as she turned away and shut her eyes.

"Well, for your information, some of us have real lives, Klein!"

"Hey, that hurt!"

"I know it did!"

Yui then flew back into my pocket. As that happened, I noticed Leafa begin to fly into the sky.

"Leafa?" I asked.

She looked down at me.

"We still have a ways to go before we get to Arun." She said. "Come on, let's go!"

She then began to fly without us. Klein took off, leaving Sachi and I by ourselves. I turned to look at her once again.

"Are you okay to fly?" I asked.

"Mmm-Hmm." She nodded with a smile on her face. "All good to go!"

"Alright, then let's go, then!"

My wings appeared on my back once again and Sachi and I kicked off the ground. As I flew, I was surprised when Sachi got closer to me and took my hand in hers. Nevertheless, I looked at her with a smile on my face.

"It's great to have you back, Sachi!" I replied.

She smiled back at me and closed her eyes as she blushed.

"It's great to be back!" she said.

And so, we flew forwards to catch up with Klein and Leafa.

 _Asuna_

 _Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City, The Birdcage_

I laid on the bed in the birdcage, watching helplessly as a couple of birds chirped from their place on the table across from me. I lifted my head from my pillow, flung my legs over the side of the bed and placed my bare feet on the cold floor of the cage.

 _I have to get out of here,_ I thought.

I ran over to the door of the cage and began to fiddle with the keypad.

 _Eight, one, one, three, two, three, two, nine._

I put in the combination of numbers, praying that luck was on my side. It seemed that it was, as the door slowly began to rise. I let out a sigh as the door continued to open.

"Kirito, I won't give up." I said. "That's a promise!"

I jumped out of the cage onto the wooden branch below and stared down the path to the Tree.

"Wish me luck." I whispered to myself, before I started running.

 _Author's Note:_

* And so, that's Chapter Twenty Three! I was going to make it a bit longer, just as I did the last one, but I decided with the added Author's Note and Review Responses, it would be long enough. So, what did you guys think?

* Does everyone like how Sachi debuted into ALfheim Online? I hope I did a good job. Anyway, the next chapter should hopefully be coming sooner rather than later. I don't know if I mentioned it before, but I'd like to have this story finished by the end of the year, as the developmental process for the Season 2 adaptation will be significantly longer. I hope you all can understand that.

* Anyway, I think that'll do it for me. I'm going to go though, so have a great day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 22): I definitely think that Sachi plans to dive into ALO. At least, once she gets the courage to overcome her fear of VR games due to the SAO incident. The ending was different and unexpected. However, I can actually picture it and agree with it, based on Sugou's personality. He would just try to deal with them in-game to show that there is nothing that can be done to stop him, especially Kirito._

 _Also, he is a crazy bastard who would take advantage of Asuna right to Kirito's face. The Ordinal Scale movie is really, REALLY good. It shouldn't be that much of a challenge to adapt some of the movie into your own version of SAO, since Kirito still isn't that athletic IRL. I can't wait to see how the army of Salamanders, especially Eugene, will react to Klein being with and assisting Kirito and Leafa, especially since Klein is also a Salamander._

Thanks, Naruto. Maybe you think that it's a bit early for Sachi to dive into ALO. Or maybe you think that it's not, I don't know. I just hope that you enjoyed this one. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Louis XII (Chapter 2): what is the point of saving Diavel if it doesn't change anything? Diavel was also TOO a beta tester! why doesn't he interpose? it's absolutely stupid! I don't know if I have to facepalm or not? I play video games and this event has no meaning for me, because it is normal that the beta version is different from the final version, just a question of common sense!_

 _it's even more stupid for Kibaou to blame locked players like him, it only serves to divide players even more! it sounds like you absolutely want to stick to the Sao canon for some unknown reason? fun fact I just saw a review that if Kirito was playing solo it was because the author himself had problems with a guild. Kirito being a self-insert. in short, this chapter was stupid, too copy-paste on the cannon without any originality_

Thanks, Louis. I guess. So, where do I begin? I wanted to save Diabel because I though it could change a few things if I did. I also think he's a wasted character, like Sachi. That's also why I didn't kill her off, apart from the fact that she's too innocent of a character for me to do that. I will admit that I may not have considered giving him lines of dialogue during Kibaou's rant or whatever.

That's my fault. However, as for the rest of it, I feel like you're being a little too harsh. Or maybe that's just me. Diabel not dying _does_ change stuff, though. If you read as far as Chapter 11 or 12, I think, you would have seen that him surviving leads to a rivalry between him and Kibaou. This would eventually lead to Diabel leaving and forming his own group. I thought that was an interesting concept.

Am I alone there? Please, someone tell me if you think that's an interesting concept. And I think you're wrong about the whole "without any originality" thing. In that Chapter, the part of the conversation that Asuna and Kirito have while Klein was in the background, that was all me. I'm sorry that you think I delivered a lackluster chapter. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito and the gang finally arrive at the largest city in ALfheim, situated at the base of the World Tree. However, it may be a while before they can try to get to the top, as the game goes into a twenty four hour maintenance cycle. Asuna finds herself in a troublesome situation.


	24. Chapter 24: The Truth About Alfheim

Chapter 24: The Truth About Alfheim

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Four! We are getting pretty close to the end and I have to say that I'm quite excited. And I hope you are, too! There's nothing that I can say for this chapter, so let's get right into it!

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _ALfheim, Neutral Territory – Central Capital, Arun – December 10_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Six Days Remaining_

Leafa and Sachi gasped with surprise as the four of us stared up at the World Tree, just having arrived at the outskirts of Arun. The city was an impressive display, I had to admit.

"Wow." Klein replied.

"Yeah, I know." I chimed in.

I stared up at the World Tree, as I clenched my fist.

 _Asuna is up there somewhere. She has to be!_

"It's amazing!" Sachi exclaimed.

"I know, isn't it?" Leafa asked. "Welcome to Arun! It's the center of ALfheim and it's the biggest city in this world!"

"We finally made it!" Klein said with a chuckle.

"Not yet, we haven't."

The three of us turned to look at Leafa, who looked back with a smile on her face.

"First we have to get inside!"

 _A Few Minutes Later_

After a bit of walking, we walked through the front gate into Arun.

"How exciting!" Yui exclaimed as she hovered next to my shoulder. "I've never been to a city this big before!"

"Me neither." Leafa replied. "The ore light's so beautiful! Like a bunch of twinkling stars!"

That was when a loud gong was sounded, surprising all of us. Following that, a female voice was heard.

"Attention players, The server will be down starting tomorrow, December 11th at six a.m. and will be down until six a.m. the following day, December 12th for scheduled maintenance! We thank you for your patience!"

We all looked at each other with shock while the announcement repeated itself.

"Holy crap!" Klein replied. "A twenty four hour maintenance cycle..."

"Aw, man!" Sachi complained. "I just got here!"

I stared down at the ground.

"We're going to lose a lot of time." I whispered.

Leafa chuckled at last.

"Sorry, guys." She replied.

"Oh, don't worry." Klein replied while I just sighed. "It's okay!"

Leafa let out a yawn.

"Well, I know that you guys might want to keep going, but I'm tired. I want to log out and get some sleep!"

I continued staring at the ground.

"Kirito?" Sachi asked with worry.

I finally looked up with a sad smile on my face.

"Don't sweat it, guys! We can come back bright and bushy-tailed the day after tomorrow!"

Everyone was silent for a moment after that.

"Bright and bushy-tailed?" Sachi was the first to speak.

I turned to look at her.

"That's what I said, isn't it?"

She just stared back, before she closed her eyes and started laughing. I rolled my eyes as I turned away from her.

"Whatever." I replied.

"Well, let's go find an Inn and log out!" Leafa replied.

"Sure, no problem." Klein said.

"I hope we can find some place good." I said. "On the account that I blew through all of my cash today."

"And why's that? Oh, right!" Leafa replied. "You were showing off and you gave all your money to Sakuya!"

"Who's Sakuya?" Sachi asked. "And why'd you give all your money away?"

I turned to look at her.

"Sakuya is the Sylph leader. And I gave her all of my money to help them fund an attempt on the World Tree?"

Sachi blinked.

"What's so important about the World Tree?"

"Oh boy, have we got a lot to catch you up on." Klein muttered.

"Yeah, what he said. Come on, let's get going."

As we started walking again, Leafa spoke.

"I'm just saying, you should have saved a little for the Inn, Mr. Big Spender!"

I rolled my eyes with a chuckle.

"Alright, alright. Stop rubbing it in."

She turned to Yui.

"Your Dad is financially challenged, Yui. Do you know if there's a cheap Inn anywhere?"

Yui turned to look at her.

"There's one there!" she said as she pointed down the street. "And from what I can tell, it's super cheap!"

"Great! Super cheap, yay!"

I let out a sigh.

"Let's get going then."

"Now hold on and wait for us!" Klein called from behind us.

 _An Hour and a Half Later_

After Leafa departed for the night, Klein and I stayed in the game to explain stuff to Sachi.

"So, I see. Clearing the World Tree is the grand quest of the game?" she asked. "Like how the quest of SAO was to clear the floating castle of Aincrad?"

I nodded.

"Yes. However, according to Leafa, it may be impossible to pull off."

"Damn near impossible." Klein chimed in.

"And no one's cleared it yet?"

I shook my head.

"Troubling. And what about Yui?"

I turned to look at the pixie in question, sitting on my shoulder and nibbling on a piece of bread. I gently patted her head with my finger. I turned back to look at Sachi.

"She says that she's a copy of the original Yui, however that works. And she doesn't retain a whole lot of her memories. She only remembers Asuna and me. For some reason unknown to me, she doesn't remember you and Klein."

Sachi looked down with a sad look on her face.

"That's so sad." She whispered.

"Yes, I agree." I said.

Silence passed between the three of us and eventually Klein broke the silence.

"So? What about you, Sachi?"

She let out a squeak of embarrassment as her face turned as red as a cherry.

"W... What about me?"

"When we came to see you a few days ago, you said that you didn't want to come with us into ALO."

I nodded.

"And when you called me the other night, you said that you still had no plans of diving in."

Sachi sighed.

"Okay, so I changed my mind. I think I'm ready to face VRMMOs again. And I was obviously right, because I'm having a blast! It's so cool to fly!"

I chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad that you're confident in yourself again, Sachi."

"By the way, how did you find us at the plateau a couple hours ago?" Klein asked. "How did you know where to look?"

Sachi blushed.

"Well, I didn't know where to look at first. I spent most of the first part of my day asking around the Spriggan Territory if anyone had seen a powerful Spriggan boy."

"And? What did they say?"

"No one knew where you went. But I heard whispers of a meeting between the Sylphs and Cait Siths on a plateau not far from Arun. With any luck, I thought you'd be there. So, I began running! And I didn't look back!"

I looked at her still, feeling as though there was a piece missing.

"But to get to Arun, you would have needed to go through the Legrue Corridor!"

"Yes."

"And the tunnels are full of monsters!"

"Killed 'em all."

"With a starter weapon?"

An annoyed expression appeared on Sachi's face.

"Are you implying that I'm weaker than you?"

My face flushed.

"No, no, no! Not at all! I just think that since you have no experience with the game that you should..."

"It's not a death game, Kirito! I can concentrate before attacks, figure out how I'm going to fight and then succeed in said fight!"

I let out a sigh.

"Alright, alright! I'm sorry! I'm just glad that you're doing better with this sort of thing."

The annoyed look finally disappeared from her face.

"Thanks." She replied.

"So, ALO is closed for beta all day tomorrow." Klein changed the subject.

"Oh, that's right." I said, sighing with defeat. "I kinda almost forgot about that."

Sachi came over to my place at the table that we were sitting at and patted my back.

"It's okay, Kirito. We still have time."

I nodded.

"Yeah, just not a lot of time. Sachi, we have less than week until we finally go back to school!"

She nodded.

"If we have to postpone to work on our education, then we'll just have to!"

Klein let out a sigh as he put his feet up on our table.

"Come on, Kiri-Dude!" he exclaimed. "You need to have some hope for once in your life!"

Sachi moved over to Klein's spot of the table now.

"Come on, get your feet down!" she exclaimed as she pushed his feet off of the table.

Klein looked back at her with an annoyed expression.

"What did I do?"

"Nothing, as usual."

I let out another sigh as I stood up from the table.

"Well guys, I think I'm going to call it a night." I said. "I'll see you guys, well, whenever."

The both turned to look at me.

"Well, what are you going to do tomorrow since ALO will be down?" she asked.

I shrugged.

"Who knows? I'll probably just hang with Sugu for the day. Klein show Sachi how you're supposed to log out in ALO. I'll see you guys later."

I was about to turn and head for my Inn room, but Klein stopped me.

"Kiri-Dude, wait!"

I turned my head back to look at them.

"What?"

He got up and walked over to me.

"Leafa said that Sachi's voice sounded familiar, remember?"

I put my hand on my chin.

"Oh, yeah. She did say something like that."

"What do you think it means?"

I shrugged.

"What are you trying to say?"

He looked at me with a troubled look.

"What if Leafa is someone we know from real life?"

"I hadn't thought about it. But I guess it would make sense. Who would it be, though?"

When Klein didn't answer, all three of us began to think.

"Could it be Sugu, your cousin?" Sachi asked.

I shook my head.

"There's no way. Sugu hates video games because of what SAO did to me."

"I don't blame her." Klein replied.

"Hey, don't forget that you were stuck in that game, too!"

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

When no one else said anything, I decided to take my leave.

"Alright, I'm gonna go. I'll see you guys later."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye, Kirito!" Sachi exclaimed, as she ran over to me and hugged me.

I was surprised by the hug and blushed, but nevertheless, I smiled and hugged her back. Sachi never seemed to get over the crush that she had on me, however, she seemed content with just being friends. She also and gotten a bit taller since the end of SAO. She could no longer hug me and rest the top of her head just underneath my chin like she could in SAO and the few months following.

"Alright, Sachi." Klein said as he gently grabbed the girl and tried to pull her off of me. "Let's not forget that Kirito is in a relationship!"

Sachi immediately pulled away from our hug and looked at him.

"What are you saying?!"

Klein just chuckled.

"Come on, it's obvious! We all know that you have a crush on him!"

She gasped with surprise and embarrassment.

"Why, that's not true!"

I cleared my throat.

"Alright guys, I'm gonna go now. See ya."

They both turned to look at me, but eventually turned back to each other and began to argue. I couldn't help but chuckle as I brought up my menu and logged out.

 _Asuna_

 _Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City – December 11_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Five Days Remaining_

Even though ALfheim was going through a maintenance cycle, I was still here, as I couldn't log out. And I would be very surprised if I was the only one who was still here. Sugou and his people were no doubt still in here. They had to be. I ran down the path and came to a stop, taking cover in the trench-like path. I peered out at the path ahead and saw that the coast was clear. And I saw what looked like a door.

"An opening." I told myself.

I took off running to the next cover and I still didn't see anyone. I ran to the wall adjacent to the opening and took cover. I peered inside and saw a circle shaped door. I ran over to it and put my hand on what looked like a button. It opened and I let out a light gasp to what I saw on the other side. I took cover again and when nothing happened, I peeked my head out again. It was just a long, bright hallway. I stepped inside and slowly began to walk.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House_

I was hunched down outside, as I splashed water onto my face. I turned to faucet connected to the house off and began to dry my face. I heard the door open to my right and I looked in that direction with a smile.

"Hey, Sugu." I said with a tired tone. "Good morning."

She looked back at me with a look of concern.

"Morning, Kazuto." She replied. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

I chuckled.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just had a late night is all."

"What were you doing?"

"Oh, you know. Just poking around on the Internet?"

She now looked at me with irritation.

"I thought I told you how I felt about you doing that?!"

I backed up with surprise and fell onto my butt because I was still hunched down.

"Hey, easy! I wasn't doing _that_! I was just looking for any leads on Asuna's disappearance!"

I didn't like lying to Sugu. But if I told her the truth, who knows what she'd do? Apparently, she bought my lie. She let out a sigh and the look on her face cooled.

"Well?" she asked in a calm tone. "Did you find anything out?"

I shook my head.

"Unfortunately, no."

An apologetic look appeared on her face.

"Oh. Sorry."

I shook my head.

"No, that's alright."

 _Asuna_

 _ALfheim – Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City_

I slowly inched my way down the hall, hoping that no one would suddenly appear and bust me. No such thing ever happened, though.

 _How far does this hallway go?_

The hall looked as though it could go on forever. I eventually rounded a corner and quickly ducked back behind it. Once I was sure that there was no one there, I stepped out again. There was a panel of some kind on the wall. I walked over to it and took a closer look.

"No way." I whispered. "It's a map!"

I looked around me.

 _Where is it?_ _There's got to be a console where I can log out!_

I continued scanning the map and eventually something caught my eye. It was a portion of the map that was labeled "Experiment Hanger" in Japanese and another language. And I assumed that language was English.

 _Experiment Hanger?_

As I stood there thinking, I had a flashback to a couple of days ago, when Sugou was talking to me about his illegal experiments. Didn't he say something about holding brains hostage? Using SAO survivors as test guinea pigs?

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House_

I stood in the kitchen with Sugu as we made our lunches for the day. I was chopping away, and I noticed Sugu turn to look at me out of the corner of my eye.

"Hey, big brother?"

"Yeah?"

"I want to go out shopping for groceries today."

"Okay."

When she didn't answer, I turned to look at her. She seemed to be blushing.

"What? What is it?"

"When we go, can you get me a green tea raspberry parfait?"

I smiled at her.

"Yeah, you bet I can."

She smiled back at me.

"Thanks!"

I turned back to the cutting board.

"There's no need to thank me."

Silence passed between us after that.

"So, besides shopping, is there anything else you want to do today?" she asked.

I thought about it.

"I am actually free today. So, I could just hang out with you today."

"I know! We could go see a movie!"

I nodded.

"Yes, we could."

Sugu looked away.

"Well, that is if you even want to go."

I looked back at her.

"Of course, I want to go! We never get to hang out just the two of us!"

She turned back to me with a smile on her face.

"Well, good! Now, let's eat! I'm starving!"

I smiled before I collected myself and followed Sugu to the table.

 _Asuna_

 _ALfheim – Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City_

The door in front of me opened and revealed a room full of cylinder like objects. And it was a big room. According to the directory, this was the "Experiment Hanger". They were all lined up neatly in rows, each row having the same number of objects in them. I slowly paced forward into the room. I came to a stop when I heard a beeping sound. I walked over to the object that made the sound and saw a hologram of a human brain. I stared down at it with horror.

"Is that a..."

 _Did you know that by expanding the brain's control regions, one could influence a person's thoughts, emotions and memories?_

I could just barely hear Sugou's evil laugh in my ears. I let out a gasp of shock as I realized what I was standing in front of. This was a real, human brain! A test subject!

"It's suffering!" I whimpered to myself as I backed away from it.

I looked around the room in a full 360 degree rotation.

 _They were all suffering..._

"They're all players... Survivors of SAO."

I did my best to regain my straight face, but I couldn't do it. My eyes darted back and forth from each object.

 _I wonder which one... Silica is?_

I looked closer and saw that there were pain and shock alerts going off. In fact, in each brain there were several being dinged within one second.

"Oh my God! This is horrible!"

I just stood there, shivering, not being able to do anything else. A few seconds afterward, an angry look spread across my face.

 _He won't get away with this. Not if I can do anything about it!_

I placed my hand on the object.

"Don't worry. I'm gonna save you!"

That's when I heard a door open and I knew that I had to hide. I ran to hide behind one of the objects just in time, as two older men wearing white robes walked into the room. I guess in this game they'd be considered wizards?

"Okay, let's see what everyone's up to." One of them replied upon walking in.

He came to a stop at one of the objects.

"Ooo, this guy's dreaming about Spica again. His B-13 and B-14 fields are way off the scale. Look, 16's getting up there to! He's really excited!"

"That's only the third experiment." The other wizard said. "Maybe it's a coincidence."

I watched their twisted observation from my hiding place.

"No, it's definitely the induced emotions. He's over the threshold now because of the frequency at which its occurring."

I decided to get up and try to sneak away while they had their backs to me.

"Hmm. Then we'll have to keep monitoring him. I'll put him on the list."

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Bus Station_

Sugu and I left the house to catch a bus to the store. I was wearing my typical winter jacket, while Sugu was wearing her red coat, a matching red scarf and a hat. As we waited at the station, she spoke.

"Hey, I was wondering, what's happening with school?"

I let out a sigh.

"What about it?" I asked as we boarded the bus.

"It's just that you were going to be in high school if it wasn't for SAO and even a year after the incident, you're still not back in school. None of you are!"

We walked back to the back of the bus in silence.

"It would suck if you got behind."

I put my hand on my chin as I rested my elbow against the window.

"Yeah well, that won't last much longer. I have a little less than a week before I have to go back. We're all going to be going to school in the city. It's supposed to be temporary, they set it up on an old, vacant campus. All of the middle schoolers and high schoolers will have been from SAO. And probably no outsiders."

 _Now departing,_ an electronic voice spoke.

"You can get in without taking a test." I continued. "And once you graduate, you can take the college entrance exam."

"Really? Hmm. You ask me, that's a pretty good deal."

She turned away from me.

"But it sucks that they're cramming you together like that."

I chuckled.

"I get why they're doing it. When you think about it, we were trapped inside SAO for more than two years. No one knows what that experience did to our minds. This is how they'll keep an eye on us."

She turned to look at me with an uncertain look.

"Seriously?"

"If I wanted to get into a normal high school now, it'd be way too hard. I'd have to spend a whole year in cram school and then I'd basically be starting over from scratch. And plus, that's a good amount of time that I wouldn't be spending with my friends. I don't know if I can do that."

I turned to the window with an uncertain look myself.

"I could just take the entrance exams now and see what happens, but it's been so long since I've been in school and studied, that I doubt I'd pass."

"What are you saying? You'd totally pass!"

I turned back to look at her with surprise.

"You're smart and you've got good grades!"

A bashful smile came to my face.

"No, I _had_ good grades. I haven't studied for going on three years, remember?"

"Why'd they give you guys all that time off?"

My smile disappeared and I turned to look out the window again.

"Because of what this could have done to our heads. We needed time to recuperate after SAO. And some of us needed that more than others."

She was silent for a second.

"I have an idea! I'll tutor you!"

"Huh?" I asked with surprise as I turned once again.

She looked at me with a smile.

"Okay. Well, you can help me with math and information technology."

The smile dropped off her face as she looked back at me with a weird look.

"Eh..."

I eventually smiled and chuckled again.

 _Asuna_

 _ALfheim – Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City, Experiment Hanger_

I ran and hid behind another one of the pillars. And then ran and hid behind another. As I watched the two wizards still with their backs to me, I turned and looked behind me. There was a rotating black cube of some kind at the end of the room. And I recognized it, even though it had been more than a year since I had seen one.

 _There it is_ , I thought.

I briefly flashed back to SAO, when Kirito, Yui and I had been in that secret room in the dungeon below The Town of Beginnings. That room had an admin console or something like that in it. And this cube had the exact same layout as that console had, minus the fact that the console in question was rectangular and not a cube.

 _A system console._

I looked back to the wizards and saw that they were still oblivious to my presence.

 _They didn't see me. Good._

I got up and I dashed for the console. Right as I was about to reach it, I leaped through the air and grabbed the card.

 _Please work!_

I swiped the card downwards and a second or two later, a bunch of menus opened up. I smiled with joy as this happened. My eyes darted as I scanned the menus. I finally found a button labeled in Japanese, that said "Leave Virtual Laboratory".

 _This is it!_

I tapped it and another box popped up. I chuckled as I was about to hit the log out button. However, I was completely oblivious to what was about to happen.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

I stood in the frozen meat section of the store, as I waited for Sugu to return from the section that carried the fruits and vegetables. A minute or so passed and she returned.

"Is that everything?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Yep! Fruits and vegetables for the week! What about you?"

"I got all of the meat for dinner and the lunch meat for sandwiches."

"Cool."

She put her haul into the basket that I was carrying.

 _Suguha/Leafa_

After I had returned with the items that I had gotten, Kazuto and I began to make our way to the checkout line. As we walked, a thought entered my mind.

"Hey, Kazuto?" I asked as I turned to face him.

"Yeah, Sugu?" he asked in return.

I looked down with guilt regarding what I was about to ask.

"What'll happen if you never see Asuna again?"

He came to a full stop and so did I. I looked at him with worry.

"Kazuto?"

I noticed that his eyes had gone wide. The basket then slipped from his hand and fell to the floor. Only a few items escaped the basket. The basket falling snapped him out of whatever daze he had been in and he bent down to begin picking up. I followed suit and helped him.

"I'm sorry." I apologized. "I shouldn't have asked you that."

He shook his head.

"No," he spoke in a hushed voice. "it's okay."

I looked at him to see that he had a blank look on his face. I still had to know his thoughts.

"But seriously, what would happen?"

He let out a soft gasp as he looked up at me. He briefly looked at me for a few seconds, before he avoided my gaze.

"I honestly don't know what I'd do if I never saw her again." He said, his voice barely above a whisper.

I stared at him with sympathy. I let out a light gasp as I saw tears slowly begin to trail down his face.

"Kazuto?" I asked with caution.

He visibly gritted his teeth, as if he were struggling to not break down and begin sobbing right now.

"I don't think I can live without her, Sugu."

I just continued to stare at him, now feeling like I would cry myself. He turned to look at me.

"I think I love her!"

His eyes finally snapped shut and he began to silently cry. I couldn't help but push the basket to the side, put my arms around him and hug him.

"You'll see her again, big brother." I whispered into his ear. "And when you do, tell her everything you just told me!"

He clutched me as if I were his lifeline and we just remained hunched there, as he continued to cry.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

Kazuto had gotten over his sadness and we continued moving on to the checkout. Or at least he did. I just remained there as I thought to myself. I put my hand on my chest and could feel my heart thumping in my chest. I was currently conflicted myself.

 _Kazuto said that he thinks he loves Asuna_ , I thought.

I narrowed my eyes and felt my face heat up.

 _Is that what I feel for Kirito?_

I bit my lip, unsure of what to do.

"Sugu, are you coming?"

I ignored Kazuto, still thinking to myself. I barely noticed him begin to walk over to me again.

"Suguha," he spoke, snapping his fingers in front of my face. "What is it?"

I finally snapped out of my trance. I realized that I was probably blushing.

"U... Uh, nothing! It's nothing!" I exclaimed as I shook my head back and forth.

He chuckled.

"Well, come on then." He said. "Let's get going!"

I nodded as I jogged to catch up with him.

"Okay!"

 _Asuna_

 _ALfheim – Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City, Experiment Hanger_

Before I could press the button, a hand grabbed my wrist from behind and pulled it back. I gasped with shock as I turned around. The two wizards had noticed me.

"Who are you?" one of them asked. "Do you want to tell us what you're doing here?"

An angry look crossed my face as I got over the shock of the situation.

"Hey, let me go!" I exclaimed with anger. "Sugou's a very good friend of mine. I have his permission to be here and I was just about to leave when you grabbed me!"

"No one told me that you were going to be here today." Wizard one replied.

He turned to look at his co-worker.

"Did you know about her?"

"Uh, no. All I know is that he doesn't want anyone seeing this stuff. Ever."

"Hmm."

"Hold on a second, this is the girl! You know, the one Sugou keeps locked up at the top of The World Tree?"

"Right, right. I heard about her."

As they were talking, I tried to reach for the log out button again. However, they noticed my movements and pulled me further away from the terminal, that way it was no longer in my reach.

"Now, now, you need to stop struggling!"

"Stop it! Let me go, you monsters!"

One of them gasped as if they were offended.

"Don't be so mean to us! After all, you're the one who interrupted our deep-sense mapping experiment!"

"Aren't you supposed to be scientists?! Can't you tell that this is wrong?!"

"The only wrong thing I see here is you being in this room. And besides, all of this is better than sticking electrical probes into the brain of some poor animal!"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"All our experiments are, are dreams, that's all."

It was horrifying. They actually believed in Sugou's vision!

"He's right. Sometimes we show them the most wonderful of dreams. Dreams you wish you'd never wake up from. I honestly envy them."

I let out an angry gasp as I narrowed my eyes.

"You're insane. Both of you!"

Neither of them said a word for a second. Finally, one of them turned to look at the other.

"The boss is out on business, right? Log out and see what he wants us to do with her."

He let out a groan of annoyance.

"Oh, come on! Why can't you be the one to do it?"

"Because I told you to."

"Fine, whatever. But until I get back, don't do a thing to her!"

I could barely see the other one grin.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Now, get going!"

He stepped forward and pressed the log out button, then disappearing from the room. Once he was gone, I began to struggle again.

"You can't keep me here! Let me go right now!"

"I'm sorry, but I can't! The boss would kill me if I let you go!"

That's when a sinister look appeared on his face.

"I have a great idea! Why don't we take electro-drugs? I'm getting sick of playing with dolls and you look like someone that I could really have a fun time with!"

 _Did he just compare me to a doll? And is he planning on doing what I think he is?_

He suddenly reached towards me and placed his hand on my shoulder. All I knew was that I wasn't having this. And so, I bit down on his arm, and hard. As hard as my jaw would allow me to. He let out a scream of pain as he tried to pull away.

"Ow! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! Okay, okay, I'm sorry! I'll stop!"

I let go of him and he retracted his arm, grabbing it and holding it with his hand.

"Next time, I'll remember to turn my pain sensors off!" he replied as he turned his head away from me.

While he was distracted, I quickly looked back at the console and swiped the card that was in it. He somehow didn't notice that I did this. Just then, the other Wizard returned.

"Okay, what happened here?" he asked.

"Hmm, what? Oh, nothing." The other replied with embarrassment. "Well, what did the boss say?"

"Oh, he was so pissed! He said we had to put her back in the cage upstairs, change the passcode, and keep an eye on her 24/7!"

"Damn it, damn it, damn it! And just when I was about to have fun, too."

"What?"

"Hmm? Oh, nothing, nothing."

"Well, I say that we walk her back instead of teleporting her back. Because if we did that, it would be over at once. There'd be no suffering."

"I agree. Let's go and get this over with."

 _Several Minutes Later_

 _Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City, The Birdcage_

The sound of the door slamming shut sounded behind me. After they changed the code, they departed without a word to me. And I didn't care. Once they were gone, I walked to the edge of the cage and looked out at the sky.

 _This won't stop me, Kirito,_ I thought as I held the card I had snagged in my hand. _No way._ _I'll never give up! I'll find a way to get out of here!_

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _December 12_ _th_ _, 2025 – ALfheim – Arun, Inn_

 _Four Days Remaining_

ALO was finally back online the next day. Sugu and I hung out for most to the previous day. And we did go to see a movie and went to lunch after. And it was fun. But now it was time to continue our "quest", as a certain red-haired Salamander called it. So, the three of us were waiting for Leafa to arrive. And when she did arrive, she had the biggest smile on her face. I got up to greet her.

"Hey, Leafa. Welcome back."

She turned to face us with a smile still on her face.

"Thanks, I'm glad to be back!"

Klein noticed that she was speaking in a cheery tone and acknowledged this.

"Well, someone's in a good mood today! Tell us, what's going on?"

Leafa's smile briefly disappeared.

"Hey!" she spoke in an annoyed tone. "We don't discuss our real life affairs in here!"

"Oh, sorry. My bad!"

She then smiled again.

"It's no problem."

She then moved to the door and turned back to look at us.

"Well? Let's get going then! We have a lot to do today!"

I nodded and began to tap my coat pocket.

"Yui, wake up!"

The pixie in question flew out from my pocket as she let out a yawn. A smile appeared on her face once she opened her eyes and saw the four of us.

"Good morning, everyone! I hope you slept well!"

Leafa and Sachi replied to the pixie, while Klein just nodded.

"Hey, Yui." Sachi said her name. "Do you pixies actually sleep at night?"

She shook her head.

"No. Whenever Daddy logs out of the game, I shut down my input circuits and process the data I've acquired. You could consider it to be a little like human sleep, but it's not."

"Then how come you yawned just now?" Leafa chimed in.

"Oh well, that's what humans do during their boot-up sequence. When Daddy yawns, it usually lasts for eight seconds."

I blushed.

"Oh, come on!" I said. "That's not true!"

Before I could say anything else, Leafa intervened.

"So, are you guys ready to go?"

Klein nodded again, while Sachi and I replied yes in unison.

 _A Few Minutes Later_

So, we left the Inn and entered the city of Arun. And it was busier than I had expected it to be. There were probably hundreds of players in the city right now and it was quite diverse in terms of all the different races that were here.

"There's tons of people here!" Sachi said with awe as we walked down the street.

"I guess it really is the center of ALfheim." Klein chimed in.

"It seems like fairy races from all over are here!" Yui said from her spot on my shoulder. "Look how they're all getting along!"

We began to climb the series of steps that led up The World Tree, which by my estimate, was a good ten minutes or more away from us.

 _There it is,_ I thought as I narrowed my eyes. _Just wait a little longer, Asuna. I'm coming._

"There it is, The World Tree." I said.

"Yeah." Leafa replied as we all stared up at it.

"It looks so amazing up close!" Sachi replied.

"I heard that there's supposed to be a city at the top." I said. "What else?"

"Oberon The Fairy King lives there, along with the Alfs, the fairies of light." Leafa replied. "And they say that the first race to get to the top and see the king will become Alfs."

"You said that before."

"Hey, you asked."

"Has anyone ever tried climbing up the side of that thing?" Klein asked.

"They made the whole perimeter of the trunk off-limits, so a player can't even get close enough to try. And if you just fly straight up, the flight limit of your wings would just expire before you even got halfway."

"I heard about some players who tried and got more than halfway up by piggy-backing on each other." I said.

"Yeah, I heard about them, alright. But they could only make it to the lowest branches before failing. The GMs freaked out and fixed it so no one could do it again."

"How'd they fix it?" Sachi asked.

"They put a barrier up there, just above the clouds."

"That's interesting." I muttered, before turning to look at them with a smile on my face. "Alright then you guys, let's head to the base of the trunk."

"Right behind ya!" Klein exclaimed with enthusiasm.

And so, we began the long walk up to the base of the tree's trunk. The four of us chatted along the way, however there was nothing worth mentioning.

 _Sometime Later_

After what seemed like hours of walking, Leafa came to a stop and so did we. She pointed ahead of us and we all looked.

"Once we all pass through that gate, we'll be in the world's heart, the central district of Arun."

I nodded without a word and the four of us pressed on. As soon as we passed underneath the arch, Yui popped out of my pocket with a gasp.

"What is it, Yui?" I asked as she flew into my palm.

"Mommy..." she said.

Just hearing that word alone caused my heart to begin beating faster. I let out a gasp as I comprehended what she had said. The others gasped as well, however Leafa's gasp was probably out of confusion than anything else.

"It's Mommy! She's here!"

I let out another gasp as I stared up at the tree.

"Are you sure?!" I asked.

She nodded.

"Yes, positive!"

"Hey, I..."

Leafa tried to speak, but Yui interrupted her.

"I scanned again, and it's Mommy's player ID! Her coordinates are right above us in the tree!"

Yui pointed up at the tree. I let out another gasp as I looked up. I gritted my teeth as I stared up at the tree. Without even thinking about what I was doing, my wings appeared on my back and I took flight, Klein and Sachi following suit.

"Kirito! Guys, wait!"

We had left Leafa behind and as hurtful as it was to say, I didn't care. For all I knew, Asuna was directly above me. I could get her back today and everything would be over. Everything could finally start again. I was sure of it. In fact, maybe I was a little too sure of it.

"Kirito!" Leafa called my name again, but I wasn't slowing down.

I wasn't slowing down. I couldn't. I continued to fly, with my two friends right beside me. They could have been just as confused as Leafa, who knows? But one thing was for sure. Confused or not and just like me, they weren't stopping. They were in this for the long haul.

 _Author's Note:_

* And so, that's it for this chapter! I hope you guys are still enjoying the story and I hope you especially enjoyed this chapter.

* So, do you think that Sachi's description of how she got here was a fair one? Do you have any problems with it? Please do let me know. Feedback from my readers is very important to me!

* I don't think I have anything else. This chapter could have been out sooner in all honesty, but Thanksgiving was last Thursday, and I was too busy over the weekend to work on it. So, sorry about that. Anyway, I think that'll do it for me. I hope you guys have a fantastic night and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 23): I actually thought that was an interesting concept with the rivalry between Diavel and Kibaou. Kibaou became too much of a pain to deal with for the Assault Team ever since the Aincrad Liberation Squad lost many players on the 25_ _th_ _Floor Super Boss and he merged with Thinker's guild to form the Aincrad Liberation Force._

 _At that point, Kibaou became too obsessed with power. I actually didn't think it was too early for Sachi to dive into ALO. I think that it was perfect timing, especially since she missed all of the action with the Salamanders invasion. Also, it works perfectly since she actually spawned in the Spriggan home territory, unlike Kirito (and even Klein)._

 _Poor Klein. The guy seriously needs some love (not just the romantic kind). He gets burned so badly (even in canon) that I pity the dude. Can't wait to see what will happen when Leafa figures their true identities, and vice versa._

Thanks, Naruto. I'm glad that you enjoyed the chapter. It makes me happy to know that I wasn't the only one who thought that a rivalry between Diavel and Kibaou was an interesting premise. Thanks for agreeing with me, even if just a little bit. I'm also glad that you didn't think it was too early for Sachi to dive into ALO.

Yeah, if it wasn't obvious, she missed the invasion because she was traveling all day long. And Klein actually did spawn in Salamander territory. It just took him a while to find Kirito and Kirito himself was in a sleep-like state after his game glitched out. I feel like that I've essentially downgraded Klein to comic relief.

Although to be fair, once he became a main cast member after Fairy Dance (instead of just a supporting character), he essentially did become a comic relief character. So, whatever. When it comes to Leafa finding out about Klein and Kirito, I will say that my version will be a tad different. Nuff said. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _ClairerR89 (Chapter 2): Bah! Have Kirito go solo was pointless._

Thank you, Claire. Actually, it wasn't pointless. Call it lazy writing if you will, I don't care, but Kirito going off on his own put him on the path to meet the Moonlit Black Cats. You can still say it was pointless if you want. But if you ask me, there was a point. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito's quest to save Asuna pushes him to inhuman levels. After facing failure and as well as after Leafa suddenly logs out, Kirito begins to question if he really can save Asuna.


	25. Chapter 25: The Grand Quest

Chapter 25: The Grand Quest

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Five! So, I just want to give you guys a heads up. There are going to be four more chapters in this current run of the story. I know there are only three episodes left after this one to adapt, but you'll see what I mean in the coming chapters.

* The only thing I can say about this chapter is that things are about to diverge from the source material. Most of the general concepts will stay the same, but it's about how we get there that will most likely be different. You may like or dislike the coming changes. But ultimately, I hope you like, and welcome said changes! I put a lot of work and thought into how the next few chapters would go.

* One last thing before I start. I wasn't going to mention the following, but I feel like I owe it to you guys as the readers to say something. So, you may have noticed that in the last chapter, there was a scene that was left out. I omitted a scene entirely from this version of the story. You all should know exactly what scene I'm talking about.

* I hate everything about that scene, with Asuna and the slugs. That's why they're "wizards" and not slugs in my version. I knew from the get-go that that wasn't a scene I was going to adapt. I wasn't ever going to adapt that scene and for my reboot coming in the (very) distant future, the changes I made will most likely stay. I won't say anything else.

* I think you all get what I'm saying. So, without further ado, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _ALfheim, Neutral Territory – Central Capital, Arun – December 12_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Four Days Remaining_

" _Mommy."_

It was as if that one word was all I could hear. I couldn't get it out of my head. The three of us were still flying at full speed towards the top of The World Tree.

"Kirito, what are we doing?!" Klein yelled over the wind.

I didn't answer him.

"You just abandoned Leafa like that?!" Sachi chimed in.

I gritted my teeth once again.

"I can't stop now." I whispered. "I've come too far for that."

I didn't think that they could hear me. And I honestly didn't care.

 _Suguha/Leafa_

After seeing that my three new friends weren't stopping, my own wings appeared on my back as I took a running start. I kicked off the ground and began to fly after them.

 _Why is Kirito acting like this? And why are Klein and Sachi blindly following him? Is the person at the top of The World Tree that important to him?! Are they really worth all this trouble?!_

They were several lengths ahead of me and I gasped, knowing full well what would happen if they continued at the rate that they were going. I slowed my pace, but I didn't stop.

"Look out, you guys!" I exclaimed as loud as I could.

Klein and Sachi actually slowed down, but Kirito shot right through the clouds. I stayed in my place as Klein and Sachi came back to me.

"What is it?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

"If you guys keep going, you'll hit the barrier that I was talking about. We have to warn Kirito before it's too late!"

Klein shook his head.

"I think it is already too late. He's not stopping."

I flashed him a look of irritation.

"Why?! What is so important about the person at the top of that tree?! Why can't he just calm down?!"

Klein just looked at me.

"It's about his real world situation. And discussing our real lives in here is taboo. We shouldn't bother you with it. It's not your problem!"

"But what if I want it to be my problem, too? What if I want to help more? What if..."

I didn't get to finish my sentence, as I heard a loud thud from up above us. Kirito had hit the sky barrier. He came falling back down, both he and Yui screaming as he did.

"Kirito!" I shouted with worry.

 _He'll stop now. He'll see that he can't go about his goal this way and he'll stop._

But surprisingly, he didn't stop. He flew back up again, forcing the three of us to follow him.

"No, Kirito! Stop!" I exclaimed once more.

Again, he didn't listen. Klein was right. He was determined. And for reasons that I couldn't understand. He flew back up towards the barrier and we emerged on the other side of the clouds just in time to see him slam into it again. He fell a small distance and once again it looked like he would retry, when Sachi shot past me. Before he could take off again, she grabbed his arm and tugged.

"Stop! Kirito, it's impossible!" she exclaimed. "You won't get any higher from here!"

"I have to!" he exclaimed with anger. "Damn it, I have to try!"

I stared up at the two of them with confusion. Meanwhile, Yui tried a strategy of her own. She burst out from Kirito's coat pocket and flew as close to the barrier as she could get.

"Mommy! I'm here, Mommy! Mommy!"

 _Asuna_

 _Arun, The World Tree – The Floating City, The Birdcage_

I sat at the table in the birdcage, with my head down, when I heard something.

"Mommy!"

I looked up with a gasp of confusion.

 _Who said that?_

I looked around, but I didn't hear anything else. I continued looking around and that's when I heard it again.

"Mommy!"

I turned around with another gasp. I got up from the table. That voice sounded familiar. That's when I had a thought.

 _Yui? Could it be that little girl from SAO?_

I decided to test that thought and I said her name.

"Yui?"

"Mommy! Mommy!"

She spoke as if she couldn't hear me. I frantically looked around the cage, trying to find her.

"I'm here!"

I eventually found myself holding onto the bars of the cage, looking out at the clouds. I eventually looked down and I think it was then that I finally realized where her voice was coming from. It was coming from below! Down below the clouds!

 _I wish she could be here! I have so many questions that I want to ask her. How can she be here? What happened to her after SAO? Was she somehow revived here, in ALfheim? And if she's here, then can that mean that Kirito's here, too?_

I couldn't ask my questions. I could only think of how I could tell her that I was here.

"I'm up here." I whispered. "And you're down there..."

I wanted to cry, but I didn't. That's when I remembered the admin card that I had swiped yesterday from the console. I pulled it back out and looked at it.

 _Could they use this to get up to me?_

I finally held it out in the air, outside of the bars. I dropped it and hoped for the best.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

I had pulled away from Sachi's grip and was now repeatedly punching the invisible barrier. It didn't matter, however. No amount of force was going to get me through that barrier. I just couldn't bring myself to admit it.

"Why can't I bust through it?!" I screamed.

"I used warning mode to contact her, but it didn't work." Yui whined.

I paid no attention to her. I continued pummeling the barrier with punch after punch. I eventually heard Klein let out a sigh from behind me.

"Kirito, it's time to stop." He said. "You need to calm down."

"No!" I exclaimed with irritation.

Sachi was next to try to talk me down. She flew up to me as I continued to persist.

"Kirito, please! Stop before you exhaust yourself!" she pleaded. "It hurts me to see you doing this to yourself!"

I didn't listen to her, either.

"No!" I exclaimed as I continued still. "I have to see her again! I have to! I have to! I have to!"

As I threw the second to last punch, tears began to rapidly roll down my cheeks. That's when I was forced to stop. I was surprised when Sachi gently pulled me into her grip, shushing me as I finally broke down, crying tears of frustration, anger and sadness. But mostly tears of frustration and anger. And so, I stopped moving. I surrendered myself to Sachi's warm, welcoming grasp and allowed her to continue hugging me, lightly humming to me as she did, as if I were a baby.

 _Sometime Later_

As I was being calmed down by Sachi, Yui caught something that had apparently fallen from the tree. It was a card of some kind. Leafa had no idea what it was. Speaking of Leafa, as we wall sat at the base of the tree now, she had the most confused look on her face. I pitied her. Sachi and Klein both knew about my struggle to find Asuna in the real world. Meanwhile, Leafa was completely clueless about what was going on.

Apart from the almost week that we had spent with her, we hardly knew her. How could I drag her into my problems? How could I be so cruel? That would be a selfish thing to do, to make my problems her problems. Or was I being selfish by not letting her in on what was really going on? I don't think I had an answer. Anyway, back to the card.

I couldn't interact with it at all. Yui eventually revealed that the card had system-admin access codes on it. So, if that was the case then why did we have it now? Why had it fallen from the tree? Was Asuna really at the top of that tree? And if she was, had she dropped the card down to us so we could use it to get to her? I was so confused.

When I asked Yui if we might be able to access the GM's controls with the card, she said no. Another dead end. Apparently, we needed a console to access the codes. So, as of now, the card was useless to us without a console. Even Yui couldn't bring up the system menu, which is what we needed. According to her, no player could pull up the system menu.

Yui hypothesized that Asuna was at the top of the true and she had heard us. To tell us she had, she must have dropped the card for us to catch. Leafa had brought us down to rest at the base of The World Tree, where there was a gate that led into the Tree. According to Leafa, there were rumors that the Tree was actually completely hollow. But I didn't know if that was the case. I put the card into my other coat pocket.

 _I had to try. I'd come too far to give up now._

The door to the inside of the Tree (if there was an inside to it) was right in front of me. I could run for it right now and leave my friends in the dust. If I stood around doing nothing for even one more second, I'd go crazy. Besides, I knew that Yui wanted to see Asuna just as bad as I wanted to. I stood up from the ground. As I ran closer to the gate, all three of my friends looked up.

"Kirito!" they all cried in unison.

"What are you doing?!" Leafa cried.

I turned to look at them with a frown on my face.

"Sorry guys. But I have to do this."

They all looked at me with worry and I turned back to the gate. The two stone swords had crossed over the door and I heard an automated voice began to speak.

"Thou knowst not the heights of heaven above, dost thou seek entry to the castle of the king?"

After that, a notification popped up in front of me. It asked me if I would attempt the quest, "Guardians of the World Tree". I pressed confirm.

 _Hold on Asuna, I'm coming._

"Then prove thou art worthy of thy wings. Prove thou art worthy of flight!"

The gate opened and I walked into the hollow interior of The World Tree, which was in fact hollow, and was quickly blinded by bright lights that were apparently coming from all directions. Once I recovered from the bright lights, I looked up and scanned my surroundings. The room seemed to go up hundreds of feet. I squinted and made out what appeared to be some sort of hatch on the ceiling at the very top of the room.

I raised my sword upwards and prepared to take flight as my wings materialized on my back. I let out a yell of fury as I burst off the ground and took flight. Not even upon reaching halfway up, enemies began to spawn out of the walls. Defenders of the castle, if you will. I grimaced for a second as they charged towards me, but eventually I regained my straight face and prepared to fight back.

"Get out of my way!" I exclaimed as I parried one of the knights' swords. "I have much to do!"

I grabbed him while in midair and snaked my sword into a crack between his chest plate and helmet and delivered the killing blow, decapitating the knight.

 _I can do this!_

Just as that thought entered my mind, dozens upon dozens more of those knights spawned into the room with me. I came to a full stop in midair and stared them down, somewhat intimidated. Eventually, I gritted my teeth and resumed in my path. I dashed forward, dodged one of the knights and struck down his ally.

I spun around and cut off both of the knight's hands, before he died. I turned to strike another knight. I punched him and stabbed my sword through his chest, all the while pictures of Asuna flashed through my brain.

 _Die!_

More flashes of Asuna appeared in my brain, mainly of her joyous, smiling face.

 _Die, damn it!_ I thought as I put my fist through the knight's helmet.

I heard a knight approach from behind and spun around before he could strike me. I weaved beneath his blade and struck him down with ease. I turned and once I saw multiple knights closing in on me, I grinned in anticipation. I soared past them and targeted the one in the back. I landed on the knight's chest and my sword pierced through his armor.

I spun around and decapitated the knight behind me. I made a cut across another knight's chest, killing him. As another knight approached, I failed to dodge his attack and our blades clashed together. I let out a grunt of anger as I felt as though I would falter. But then, more images of Asuna flashed before my eyes.

I gritted my teeth once more and pushed harder. I broke the sword lock with the knight and struck him down easily. I soared towards him, lifted my sword over my head and brought it down across his body. Once he disappeared, I got ready for another wave of knights. I got double-teamed by two knights and as I tried to combat one of them, I took a strike and lost a significant amount of HP.

I pulled away from the sword that was caught in my wrist and grabbed one of the knights by the wrist, proceeding to slam him into his buddy. Afterwards, I soared upwards and I slammed back into the knights, skewering both of them with my sword. I continued to soar up towards the next wave of knights, preparing to attack.

I dashed towards all of them, striking them as I did. One of the knights managed to catch me by surprise and took me back down a bit. I blocked his blade with mine and eventually cut him down. As I soared back up, more flashes of Asuna appeared in my brain.

That time Asuna was so happy when I agreed to split the Ragout Rabbit Stew with her. Next, when she was mad at me at the teleport gate in Algade. That time when we had lunch with Sachi in the labyrinth, the time she saved me from that one nameless bastard that wanted me dead, so many memories of her and her face flashed through my mind.

 _Asuna, Asuna,_ her name echoed in my head. _Asuna, Asuna, Asuna, Asu..._

I reached up towards the hatch, when a shard of light pierced through my gloved hand. I stopped in my flight and stared at the shard of light that was now impaled through my hand. I looked around me and saw more knights that had formed a circle around me. They wore the same armor as all the other knights. However, they were all armed with bows and arrows.

 _It would seem that they've brought in archers,_ I thought.

There were too many of them for me to handle. There were at least five circles of archers here, all neatly stacked above the one below. No doubt they would all begin firing at any second now and I didn't have a whole lot of time. Actually, scratch that last thought.

 _If I play my cards correctly and if I move fast enough, I might be able to take on all of them!_

Every one of them fired their bows in unison and as they did, I began to weave in and out, desperately trying to avoid their arrows. However, I wasn't completely safe. One arrow pierced through my calf, two through my arm and one through my back. I looked at my HP bar. It had fallen into the yellow zone and would reach the critical red zone pretty soon.

I couldn't afford to take on more than a few more hits. However, I continued flying. I was completely ignoring the archers and swordsmen at this point. I was soaring towards the hatch, moving as fast as the system would allow me to go. I was so close to the hatch, that I thought I could reach out and touch it.

That's when I felt a jolting pain in my chest. I looked down at my chest, to see the tip of a sword protruding from my chest. One of the knights had seriously thrown his sword and he nailed me with it. And he wasn't the only one. Just in the span of a two seconds or less, I was nailed with four more swords.

I hunched forward and hacked up what could only be seen as virtual blood. I tried to keep moving and that's when my vision began to darken. I gritted my teeth and let out a scream of rage as my HP fell into the critical red zone and continued falling.

 _Just a little further,_ I thought as I reached my hand out.

I let out one final scream of rage as everything went black. That's when the screen I never saw during my time in SAO popped up: You are dead, spelled out in all caps. I completely lost all feeling in my body and limbs.

 _Is this what Akihiko Kayaba meant in my vision? "Game over, Kirito"?_

I couldn't see nor could I move. I could only hover here and think about my failure. My vision returned and I saw my surroundings once more, however, I still couldn't move. A timer for five hundred and ninety five seconds appeared in front of me. Under the timer, it said, "Resurrection Timer."

 _I actually died, didn't I? Damn it..._

It dawned on me that when I looked around, I didn't see my body parts. It was like my vision was in third person. And I didn't see my body, no. Instead, I saw a small, purple flame with a circle of yellow at its core. I think that's where I died.

 _When I get resurrected, will it spawn me where I was? Or outside of the World Tree?_

There was no use in thinking. No use in speculating either.

 _I always believed that somewhere, deep down, this world was just a game. Is this my punishment for thinking that? My strength in the game is a lie. Nothing more than a bunch of skills and stats. I didn't give a damn about its rules or its limits. I thought I could do anything. Now I see how much of a fool I was. Now I see how wrong I was._

Flashes of my days fighting in SAO appeared before my eyes. Some of them painful, some of them not. But for the most part, they were painful. My strength isn't real. It's nothing more than a set of numbers and if those numbers are high, that doesn't make me strong. All it says about me is that I'm a pathetic loser who puts all of my time into leveling in an MMORPG.

I may be "strong" in the game, but I'm weak in the real world. In SAO, they called me "The Black Swordsman". I could have taken on hordes of enemies singlehandedly. But who was I kidding? In here, I was nothing. My strength was just numbers and that meant nothing. As Kirito, I was strong and fearless.

That's why I created the persona of Kirito in the first place. I created him because he was the complete opposite of me in the real world. He was handsome, strong and fearless, while my real life face was something I had been trying to escape from for years in the real world. That's why I dove into SAO without a second thought. I wanted to leave behind the life that I wasn't happy in and become something I could actually be proud of.

But I had finally realized it. For months, years even, I had been led to believe that Kirito and Kazuto Kirigaya were two different people. I had created the character of Kirito to escape from myself, because I was ashamed of who I was, after all.

I wore Kirito as if he were a mask, to hide myself. But they were the same person. I was flawed in real life and in the game, I was flawed as well. I was a failure. I charged head on into battle and failed. So, yeah. I guess I wasn't as good as I thought I was.

 _A game where it's okay to die shouldn't be that big a deal,_ my words to Klein and Agil a few days back echoed in my head. _How dumb could I really be?_

Even in a game where death no longer means dying in real life, there are still going to be risks. Was I really so blinded by my success in SAO that I thought I could do anything? Maybe. I looked up at the hatch as my vision seemed to dim again. I wanted to cry, but I couldn't.

 _Asuna, you'd be ashamed that this is the boy you fell for,_ I thought.

Eventually, some more time passed, and my body began to reform around the purple flame. I could actually look around now, but I still couldn't move my limbs. All of a sudden, the enemies in The World Tree became active again.

 _What the hell is going on?_

I turned my body around and I saw flash of green all the way at the bottom of the Tree. Eventually, I saw Leafa soar up towards my reforming body.

 _What is she doing? No way! Stay back!_

Leafa wasn't ready for the first knight's attack. She hesitated at the last second and was swatted aside as if she were a fly. However, she recovered pretty quickly and kept flying towards me, weaving in and out, avoiding any contact with the knights. She flipped over one of the knights as he attempted to strike her and left him in the dust.

As she continued to fly towards me, she blocked an enemy sword with her own and kept moving. I had no idea why she was doing this. She was helping a guy that she hardly even knew. Well, she had helped me get to The World Tree because I _asked_ her to. And Klein helped out without me even having to ask. Sachi even came to help us later and it wasn't her problem.

They've done their part; I could have taken it from here. But I didn't see Klein or Sachi with Leafa, so maybe Leafa just felt like she needed to help. She continued soaring past the knights and archers, flipping out of their way just to get to me. All of a sudden, I saw her smile as she sheathed her sword.

"Kirito!" she called my name.

She finally reached the flame that represented me, grabbed it and hugged it to her chest. At this time, about six knights were closing in on her. Just as they were about to strike, she flew downwards, causing four of their swords to clang together. She kept flying downwards as the archers began to fire again and she whizzed past arrow after arrow.

She was doing pretty good until she took an arrow in her shoulder blade. However, that didn't cause her to stop. Instead, she just continued to fly. And she flew faster now. She took several more arrows and let out a few grunts of pain, but she still didn't stop. She dodged the swords of two knights as they attempted to strike her.

She finally reached the ground and nailed it shoulder-first, letting out a grunt of pain as she did. She laid on the ground for several seconds before she started to get up. She began to fly low, close to the ground on the rest of the way to the doors that were now open. She continued dodging both swords and arrows alike.

She let out a scream as she finally emerged on the outside of The World Tree. The doors shut behind us as she laid on the ground, with the small flame still in her hand.

"Kirito..." she spoke my name, her voice full of worry.

She stood up, opened her menu and began to scroll through it. I couldn't tell what she was doing, but she wasn't taking her time. Eventually, she laid the flame down onto the ground and allowed a drop from some kind of potion to fall onto it.

It was at this point that my form became solid and I began to regain the feeling in my limbs. It finally occurred to me that I had somehow been resurrected early. I finally opened my eyes and looked down at her. As I looked down at her, she stared back up at me as she smiled.

"Kirito!"

I lifted my hand in front of my face, made a fist and sighed. I fell onto my rear end and refused to move. Leafa scooted over to me and rested her hand on mine. I let out another sigh.

"Leafa, thank you." I said. "But you should have left me in there."

She let out a bit of a gasp as I said that.

"W-Why did you just waltz in there like that?! I could have helped!"

I didn't say anything in return.

"Yeah, buddy!" Klein exclaimed as he appeared at my side. "We would have gone in there with you!"

"Klein, how nice of you to finally join us." I finally spoke.

"Dude, I've always been here! I volunteered to go into The World Tree with Leafa, but she said no!"

"We both knew that I had the better shot of getting in there and retrieving him. Besides, you wouldn't even know what to do!"

"Well, I could at least distract the enemies!"

"You wouldn't be able to move as fast as I could."

As Leafa and Klein argued, I stood up. Sachi finally ran over as well.

"You can't just keep running off like that!" she cried with worry.

As bad as it made me feel, I ignored Sachi. Klein turned to face me as I invited him to a trade window.

"Kirito?" he asked with confusion.

"Here, take this." I said, as I transferred my sword to his inventory, causing it to appear, with him holding it in both his hands. "Because I quit. I give up."

I turned away from them and began to walk down the path away from The World Tree. They noticed this and began to follow me, with Klein following on my left side and Leafa and Sachi following on my right side.

"Kiri-Dude, what are you doing?" he asked as he followed.

I flashed him an angry look.

"What the hell does it look like I'm doing, Klein? I'm going home. I was a fool to think that I could free Asuna."

Klein and Sachi remained at my side, while Leafa stopped in her tracks.

"W-What did you say?" she asked.

While Klein and Sachi stopped walking, I continued in my path.

"I said that, "I was a fool to think that I could free Asuna". She's the one I've been struggling to find. I've been looking for her and I have reason to believe that she's at the top of The World Tree. Why?"

"Asuna?" Leafa muttered her name.

I slowed in my pace a bit, but I didn't stop walking.

"But that... That means..." she began stuttering behind me. "Then you're... Oh my God... Kazuto? Kazuto, is that you?"

Now I stopped in my tracks as well. I turned around to face Leafa, who looked like she had seen a ghost.

"What the hell? That's my real name! How do you know my real name?!"

I didn't even need to question it. I was already narrowing down the answer to that question. Leafa's voice had always sounded familiar to me and something about her reminded me of Sugu. I think it had finally hit me. My eyes went wide.

"Sugu?" I asked.

Leafa stood there, with her hands covering her mouth and a bright red blush was growing on her cheeks.

"Suguha?" I said her full name this time.

Leafa took a full step back and then another, which basically confirmed for me that she and Sugu were the same person. She let out a gasp as she stared at the ground. I looked over at Klein and Sachi for help, to see that he was absolutely out of it. His face was pale, and it looked like he wasn't even paying attention anymore. Meanwhile, Sachi looked just as confused as I was. Leafa/Sugu finally broke her silence.

"I can't believe it. It's not fair. No!"

"Sugu?" I asked as I took a step forward.

Leafa/Sugu took another step back. She covered her eyes.

"No, no, no," she said as she opened up her menu. "This is _so_ bad!"

"Sugu!" I exclaimed as I stepped closer once more.

After that, she disappeared as she logged out from the game. The three of us stood there in absolute silence. I don't know how long it took for one of us to speak, but eventually, Klein broke the silence.

"What the hell?! Kirito, was that really your cousin?!"

"I don't know, I think so. I-I have to log off and confront her before she does something she regrets!"

I swiped down with my hand and opened my hand.

"Kiri-Dude, wait!"

"What are we supposed to do?" Sachi asked.

I ignored them as I proceeded to log out from the game.

 _Suguha_

 _A Few Minutes Later – Kazuto's House_

Once I woke up, the first thing I saw was the poster of my ALO avatar on the ceiling. I laid there, resting my hand on my forehead. I didn't know what to do or how to respond to what had just happened. I let out a pained gasp as I began to sit up. I wanted to cry as I rolled over and got into a fetal position. I began to sit up, took off my AmuSphere and I finally let out a squeal of embarrassment as I tossed it across the bed. That's when I heard the knock at my door.

 _Kirito_

 _A Few Minutes Earlier_

Once I woke up, I sat up on my bed and took off my NerveGear. I stood up from the bed with it in hand and walked across the room to the shelf on the wall. I rested it on the shelf in between my own copy of the manga I wrote based on SAO and two framed pictures. I then walked over to my door, opened it and waited. After a minute or two, I finally heard a squeal coming from Sugu's room. I took a deep breath and walked the couple of steps to her door and I stopped. Then, I knocked. When I didn't get a response, I heaved a sigh.

"Sugu, it's me." I said.

"Go away!" she responded almost immediately.

I stood up straight with surprise. I could hear her begin to cry on the other side of the door.

"Just go." I could barely hear her say, the words practically trembling out. "Leave me alone!"

I just stood there, with a glum look on my face.

"I want to know what's wrong, Sugu. I mean, it was kind of a shock for me, too." I said as I looked down at the floor. "And if you're mad because I'm using the NerveGear again, I'm sorry. I just... It was the only way, okay?"

"You're wrong!" Sugu exclaimed in a tear-jerking voice. "That's not why."

I heard her whisper something else, but I couldn't hear what exactly she said. That's when I began to hear footsteps on the other side of the door.

"Sugu?" I asked as my head perked up.

She threw the door open, surprising me and I saw that she wasn't in a good state. Her face was pale and there were fresh tears coming from her eyes.

"I... I... I... I betrayed the feelings that I had!" she finally got over her stuttering. "I betrayed the love I felt! For you..."

I just stared at her with shock.

 _Did Sugu just admit that she had romantic feelings for me? Her brother? Erm, cousin...?_

She continued speaking and didn't let me get a word in.

"When I met Kirito, I thought, finally I could give up on all these feelings I had for you, but what the hell? I already had! When we worked together on The Death Game, I accepted the fact that Asuna was the girl that you belonged with and I opened my eyes a little, and I saw that the feelings I had for you were taboo. So, I gave up on them!"

I just stood there, feeling dumbfounded.

"Y-You had romantic feelings for me?"

She looked up at me, this time it being her turn to look surprised.

"Yes! Are you deaf?!" she exclaimed, before sniffling. "I realized that even if it's what I wanted, it wasn't morally right, and I needed to get on with my life before I let it consume me. I moved on."

I cocked my head to the side as a sad smile came to my face.

"Love? Well, no kidding it's not right! I mean, you and me? We're..."

The next thing that Sugu said surprised me.

"No, we're not." She said in a firm tone.

I blinked with shock.

"Huh?"

"I said, no, we're not!" she exclaimed as she wiped her tears away, only for more to come. "I know you're not really my brother and I'm not your sister!"

I let out a gasp, but said nothing.

"I've known all along! For the last three years, anyway."

 _She had known that we weren't really siblings while I was trapped in SAO?_

She looked back up at me with an angry look.

"That's why you quit kendo, isn't it? And why you started avoiding me? Because you knew the whole time, didn't you? You pushed me away because I'm not your real sister, didn't you?!"

Sugu was practically screaming at me at this point. When I didn't answer, that practically confirmed it.

"You did..." she finally spoke, before screaming at me again. "Well, if that's how it is, why do you care about me now?!"

I only backed up a step with shock from how angry she was getting. When she spoke once more, it was in a softer tone, so I took a slight step forward.

"I just... I was so... happy you came back from SAO. I was happy because you were being nice to me again, just like when we were little."

I slightly looked down at the ground out of guilt at this point.

"It felt like you were finally giving me a chance!"

My eyes widened once she said that and I looked back up at her.

"That's what I thought!" she continued as another wave of tears came about. "But now... If this is how it is, I wish you would have kept on being a jerk to me!"

Those words hit me hard. It felt as though I had been stabbed in the chest. At this point, I couldn't bear to look at Sugu anymore. So, I looked to the side as she continued speaking.

"If you had, maybe I wouldn't have realized how I felt about you..." she said as she put her face into her hands. "Maybe I wouldn't have felt jealous when I found out that you were dating Asuna."

Those words also hit me hard, so much so that it felt like I had been hit by a truck.

 _Sugu had been jealous of Asuna?_

"And I wish I hadn't gotten over you." She mumbled, before she looked up at me and began yelling again. "Because if I hadn't, I wouldn't have forgotten about you and I wouldn't have fallen in love with Kirito instead!"

And with that, she slammed the door in my face.

"Sugu!" I exclaimed with surprise.

I didn't get a response from her. All I could hear was her crying on the other side of the door. I finally let out a sigh as I went back to my own room. Once I closed the door behind me, I just stood in the darkness for a while, not moving or doing anything. I finally heaved a sigh. Then, with an amazing degree of agility, I stepped forward and pushed the entire contents of my shelf to the floor.

My personal copy of my manga, the two framed photos and the NerveGear, all of it came crashing down to the floor. I began to bang my head against the wall out of frustration as I let out a sigh. I was expecting for Sugu to say something from her room, telling me to stop, but I never heard anything from her other than her sobbing.

I finally sighed, walked over to my bed and collapsed on my side onto the bed. I finally summoned the strength to roll over and look at my digital clock. It said that it wasn't even eight o'clock yet. I sighed. I didn't want to go to bed, but at the same time, I didn't want to do anything for the rest of the night.

I sat up on my bed and pulled my knees to my chest. And as I rested myself against the wall, I began to weep. And when I cried, I cried harder than I had in quite a while. I came to accept what had happened today. I failed. I was a failure.

 _Author's Note:_

* And so, that's it for this chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed this one!

* I imagine that some of you (maybe a lot of you) didn't like how this chapter turned out. And if any of you have negative opinions about this chapter, that's absolutely fine. I get it.

* Some of you may think "this is out of character for Kirito", that it's not in character for him to just give up? Again, I get it. But I hope that you can trust me with what I'm doing. This may be a huge loss for Kirito, but the way I see it, he'll be back and better than ever in the next chapter!

* Just give this change a chance? It's not as bad as it may seem, I assure you. So, that's all I have. As always, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Anyway, I'm going to go, so have a fantastic rest of your day and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 24): I wonder if anyone else besides Kirito will actually make it to the top area where the locked door is in your version? It would be nice if Klein and Sachi also made it, but there are way too many Guardians to deal with and they keep infinitely spawning. Just to let you know, Klein is one of my favorite SAO characters._

 _I know he ended up being turned into a comic relief character after the Aincrad arc, but he is still a caring guy. On a side note, I kind of want to have a chapter that focuses on Sachi's point of view and the events from her side that led to her decision for diving into ALO. It could be like a flashback chapter or even her explaining to everyone once Asuna and the captured SAO players are rescued and Sugou is dealt with._

Thanks, Naruto. I doubt that anyone will make it up the top with Kirito. It's a nice idea, but it's unlikely to happen. I really like Klein, too. Keep in mind that I'm not at all caught up with the light novel or manga, but I could have sworn that earlier this year, that he and Sinon had gotten together?

Or maybe that a pairing between the two of them was hinted at? Or maybe I'm mistaken, and I heard something else. I don't know! In terms of your idea for a Sachi-led chapter, it's a good one and I like it. I may just put it to use. Maybe I'll replace the "recap episode" in the Phantom Bullet Arc (the one where Sinon recalls the events of the arc) with a Sachi-led chapter.

I mean, why do we need a recap chapter? What's the point of it? Or maybe I will be able to come up with something for it. Who knows? As for the Sachi idea, again, it's a good idea. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: As a wall between him and Suguha is formed, Kirito faces an internal conflict. With the help of his friends and through convincing himself, he realizes he must free Asuna – no matter what.


	26. Chapter 26: Bonds

Chapter 26: Bonds

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Six! I hope you guys are enjoyed the story and I hope you guys are okay with the changes that I've made so far.

* I would consider this chapter to be far different from the source material. Either way, I hope you all like it! So, with that said, let's get right into the chapter!

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House – December 13_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Three Days Remaining_

I laid on my bed the next morning, following a night where I had barely gotten four hours of sleep. I slowly sat up and heaved a sigh.

 _I remember the day when everything changed,_ I thought. _The day I found I wasn't really a part of this family._

I flashed back to a time which seemed as though it were a hundred years ago. It was before SAO and right around the time that I discovered my love for video games and computers.

 _It felt weird, like I didn't fit in with them anymore. And I found this out when I was ten. I wondered, "Who is she? Do I really know anything about her?" Maybe that feeling I had of not fitting in was the thing that drove me to online gaming. I guess I figured, in a virtual world, no one knows anything about anyone. So, I dove right in. And I thought it was where I belonged._

I let out a sigh as laid back down and rolled over to face the wall.

 _But those two years I spent trapped in SAO taught me something. The difference between a real and a virtual world is slim, at best. It doesn't matter if I'm strong as Kirito in the game. Just like in real life, I'm weak. We're both the same weak person. There isn't a difference between Kazuto Kirigaya and Kirito, "The Black Swordsman". At the end of the day, we're the same person and I wasn't becoming a different person._

 _It's a waste of time asking people who they really are. All you can do is accept them as is and have faith in them. I should have accepted myself for who I was from the very beginning. I should have realized that I was too weak to free Asuna in the first place. I tried to have faith in myself and look where that got me. In the end, the way you see yourself is who you really are._

I flashed to when I woke up from my coma and Sugu was crying, using my lap as a pillow as I was interviewed.

 _When I got back to the real world and saw Sugu's face, I was really, truly happy. Right then and there, I swore I'd whatever I could to close the gap that had grown between us over the last couple of years. And honestly, when I found out that Sachi was still alive! I'm torn between which moment makes me happier. But how can I repair our fractured relationship, now that this has happened?_

I sat up once more.

 _What can I do for Sugu, now that I've given up on freeing Asuna?_

She didn't want to talk to me, nor did she want to see me. I finally got up from my bed and walked past the mess from my shelf the previous night, not even bothering to pick it up. I opened my door and walked out into the hall. I walked to Sugu's bedroom door and I was about to knock, but I stopped myself. I realized once more that she didn't want to see me, so I walked towards the stairs. I walked down the stairs, through the hall and into the kitchen to make breakfast.

 _One Hour Later_

After one hour of eating breakfast and the majority of it sitting in silence, there was a knock at the door. Seeing as Sugu never came down from her room, it was up to me to answer the door. I got up from the kitchen table and took my half eaten breakfast with me. I left it on the counter, before walking out of the kitchen and down the hall.

I opened the door to see that Lisbeth was standing there. Or Rika Shinozaki, seeing as we were in the real world. But once again, if you've become accustomed to calling a person by their avatar name, it's easiest to continue doing that. She looked at me with this pleading look, as if she were silently asking me to let her in. And so, I eventually moved aside.

 _Ten Minutes Later_

Lisbeth and I sat in the living room in silence, both of us with a cup of tea sitting on the coffee table. We had barely said a word to one another. The only interaction that we had was when she asked if she could have some tea. So, I decided to break the silence since she wouldn't.

"What do you want, Liz?"

She looked up at me as she picked up her tea.

"Late last night, Klein called me, which is strange since he usually only talks to you and Sachi." She said. "But, whatever. He told me that you've given up trying to free Asuna from that game. Can I ask why?"

I was about to take a drink from my tea, but I stopped once she said that. I reached to the coffee table and put my mug back down on the coaster.

"I can't." I said at last.

Liz just looked at me.

"Oh, come on, Kirito. I asked. So, the best you can do is tell me!"

"Rika, please."

She went silent and her cheeks had a slight pink tint to them, on the account that I used her real name.

"You called me by my real name. You must be serious."

I let out a sigh.

"Rika, I'm just too weak to rescue her." I choked out.

Part of me wanted to break down and cry again at this point, but I didn't. Liz didn't say anything.

"I just... I can't do it!"

All of a sudden, Liz reached forward across the table and took both of my hands in hers. I let out a gasp of shock as I looked up at her, to see that she gazed back at me with a sad smile on her face.

"You're not weak, Kirito!" she said. "You're the strongest person I know!"

"I'm weak." I persisted in my claims.

" _No, you aren't!_ You're the one who beat SAO, after all!"

I let out a sarcastic chuckle as I looked back down at the floor, tears beginning to drip from my face.

"My strength isn't real, Liz. I used deception, the tactic of a rat, to defeat Akihiko Kayaba. If I was strong; I could have taken him."

Liz gripped my hands tightly, as if it were out of concern.

"No, Kirito, you couldn't have taken him. If you hadn't have deceived him, you wouldn't be here right now and we'd all likely still be trapped in SAO."

I didn't say anything in return this time. I couldn't see her expression, but I'm pretty sure Liz continued to look at me with a worried expression.

"I can't sit here and let you give up, Kirito. You know what Asuna would be doing if you were in her shoes?"

I didn't answer.

"She would be doing the exact opposite of what you're doing. She would be fighting relentlessly to make sure that you would be freed, and she'd never give up."

I let out a sigh.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

There was silence between us once again. Eventually, she broke the silence again.

"Well, you look like you could use some time to yourself, so I think it's best that I leave."

She stood up from the couch across from me and walk towards the hall. I got up to follow her and, on the way, there, I noticed that she hadn't drank all of the tea I had made for her. I shrugged absentmindedly and followed her to the door. As she opened the door and stepped out, she suddenly turned back to face me with an angered look that I hadn't seen from her in a while.

"What?" I asked.

"You know, I've been thinking." She spoke, while retaining that angry look. "If Asuna saw how you were acting right now, she'd be ashamed of you."

I looked down at the floor and gritted my teeth in anger. This seemed to freak out Liz out, as she took a few steps back.

"You think I don't know that?" I said, barely above a whisper.

She continued just standing there for a few seconds, before she reached out and gently put her hand on my shoulder.

"Kirito, you can't just give up on Asuna! After everything that girl has done for you, you owe it to her to at least give this another shot!"

My hand snapped up to hers on my shoulder and clasped down onto it. She pulled her hand away in reflex to how tightly I had held it.

"You know what I think?" I asked as I looked up at her, the tears coming freely now. "I think that I don't owe her anything!"

With that, I slammed the door shut. I slid down and rested my back against it as I tried to stop myself from crying any further. Finally, I wiped my eyes of any tears that remained and got back up. I walked back up the stairs and stopped when I reached the door to Sugu's room. I gently knocked on the door, only to get no answer.

Even though it wasn't polite, I waited a few seconds and I opened the door anyway. I looked in, to see Sugu asleep, lying on her side on her bed, still wearing the clothes from last night. I let out a sigh as I quietly stepped into her room. I stepped up to her bed and looked down at her sleeping form.

 _The poor thing must have cried herself to sleep last night,_ I thought, feeling a pang of remorse in my chest.

I wanted to comfort her, but how could I? Last night, she more or less expressed that she hated me! I made a fist close to my chest, as I felt another wave of sadness wash over me. I couldn't bear to be in this room any longer, so I left. But I still wanted to comfort her. So, I decided to write her a note. I left the room and shut the door behind me.

I went back down to the living room and first took the mugs that Liz and I drank from to the kitchen, so they could be cleaned. Once I had done that, I got a piece of paper, a pencil to write with and walked back into the living room. Once I had sat back down at the couch, I began to write on the paper, resting it on the coffee table:

 _Sugu,_

 _I understand why you're mad. Yesterday was a weird day. But you need to let it go. I'm sorry that you had to find out that way and I promise that I was going to tell you at some point. Even though you said that you weren't mad about me using the NerveGear, I understand if you really are mad._

 _And if I'm being honest, it was actually you who convinced me to use the NerveGear again. You told me that I had to do whatever I could to find Asuna. And I took that to heart. So, soon after that, I jumped into ALO, because I had reasons to believe that Asuna was being held in there against her own will._

 _And when you said that you wish that I would have just kept giving you the cold shoulder, that hurt. You may not believe it, but cousin or not, you are my sister. More so recently than you've ever been. When I got out of SAO, I promised myself that I'd try to repair the gap between us, because I felt bad about giving you the cold shoulder for so many years._

 _I love you, Sugu. I love you like you're my sister. Because to me, that's what you've become. And that's why it hurt to hear your words yesterday. No matter what you say, you will always be my little sister, Sugu. I really was trying not to avoid you after SAO. That's why I wanted you to help me with the SAO project!_

 _While you are the best artist I know, I thought that working on that project together would help heal the rift between us. I guess I was wrong for the most part, because this happened. I don't want you to spend the rest of your life hating me for this, Sugu. Please believe me when I say that I want to be the brother I should have been to you from the very start._

 _I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere. So, please. At least let me try to fix this, okay?_

 _Kazuto_

I finally put down the pencil, satisfied with how the letter came out. I picked it up and left my pencil on the table as I left the room. I walked up the stairs and back to Sugu's room. I slowly opened the door, to see that she was still asleep and in the same position that I had left her in. I walked in and stopped at her bedside, where I left the paper on her nightstand.

"I'm going to make things right, Sugu." I whispered, before I leaned over and lightly pecked her cheek.

As soon as I drew away from her, she surprised me by grabbing her pillow and slamming it down onto her head. I backed up in surprise and I realized that it was best that I leave the room before she wakes up, that is, if she wasn't awake already. I left the room and quietly shut the door behind me. I decided to take a shower, since I hadn't had one in a few days.

 _Suguha_

 _The World Tree_

I don't even know why I decided to log into ALO for a while. When I woke up, Kazuto was in the shower, so that was the perfect chance for me to sneak to the kitchen to get a quick snack. Apparently, he left me a note, but I didn't look at it. Instead, since I had time to kill, I just decided to log into ALO.

I spawned back into the game in the last place I had been: the outside of the World Tree. I didn't even know what I was doing in here. After what happened yesterday, I wasn't in the mood to do any quests, fight monsters, nothing. But I also wasn't ready to face Kazuto. So, I ran away back to ALO. I was staring down at the ground when someone said my name.

"Leafa?"

I looked up and gasped once I saw Recon standing in front of me.

"H... Hi!" he stuttered out in his usual shy voice. "You know, I've been looking all over for ya!"

I backed up a couple steps with surprise.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. "I thought the Salamanders caught you?"

"Yeah, well, I sort of poisoned them all and escaped!" he said, chuckling as he put his hand on his chin and taking a heroic pose.

"Wait, you poisoned them?" I asked with surprise, as I took another step back.

"Big time! After I got away, I tracked you here."

As he spoke, I continuously took more steps back.

"Hang on. What are you doing here alone? Where's that Spriggan? And that Salamander? I thought you were hanging out with them?"

It felt like my heart came to a stop. Just the thought of Kazuto and Klein brought back flashbacks from yesterday, which only worsened my mood.

"Hey, why is your face red?" he asked.

I shook my head and banished the thoughts.

"Don't worry about it!" I said. "And I won't be hanging out with them anymore."

That caused Recon's face to grow red.

"What do you mean? Did that Spriggan do something to hurt your feelings? I'll go find him right now for you!"

"It's nothing, Recon. And you wouldn't be able to catch him."

"I'm serious, Leafa! Tell me where he is, and I'll go kick his ass!"

"Recon!" I exclaimed with frustration as my face grew red.

His face grew red after that and I looked down with shame.

"I just... I feel like I said something to him that I shouldn't have."

"What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Oh, come on, Leafa. You can tell me!"

"I don't want to talk about it, Recon."

We both went silent after that. Eventually, I turned and began to walk down the steps.

"Anyway, I won't be hanging out with him or any of his friends from now on. Come on. Let's go back to Sylvain."

I sniffled as I wiped my eyes. I heard Recon mutter something from behind me, but I couldn't tell what it was. The next thing I knew, I heard him rushing down the steps behind me.

"Wait!"

I was taken by surprise when he appeared in front of me with a flash. I blushed as he grabbed both of my hands with his.

"You shouldn't be crying like that!" he blurted out.

I was a bit surprised, as I wasn't really crying.

"Uh, sorry?" I asked.

"The Leafa I know is always smiling and happy! And I'd never leave you like that!" he exclaimed, as he tightened his grip on my hands.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't even a little bit creeped out at this point.

"I'd stay with you always!" he spoke as he took a step closer. "In here and in the real world!"

I began to back away, only for him to take a few steps closer. I tried to say something, only for my words to come out as a pathetic stutter.

"I, I uh... Leafa, I mean, Suguha, I love you!"

I let out a gasp in response. The fact that he admitted his feelings shook me with surprise, along with the fact that he used my real name. Generally, in ALO, players avoided using real names and stuck with avatar names. It was just common courtesy for you not to address a player by the real name, even if you knew them in real life.

"You what?" I asked with disbelief.

He didn't give me an answer, but only closed his eyes as he leaned in, as if he were going to kiss me. I felt my face heat up.

"No, wait! Don't do that!" I said. "What are you doing?"

Would I have been okay with Recon kissing me? Maybe. But after my recent heartbreak, I wasn't sure that I was ready. So, I did what any sensible person would do. I punched him in the stomach with force, sending him crumbling down the stairs. Okay, I will admit, that I didn't mean for him to fall all the way down the stairs.

"Recon!" I exclaimed with worry.

After a few seconds he reached the bottom of the stairs, landing back first.

"Are you okay?!"

His only response as he got back up to his feet was staring up at me with a sad look in his eyes. He then mouthed what was either, "what did I do wrong" or "where did I go wrong". After that, much to my surprise, he turned around and took off running away from me. I took a second and snickered at his response, but then quickly became overcome with guilt at the prospect that I had hurt his feelings. I looked down at the ground, feeling as though I was going to cry again. Maybe it was time for me to think about where _I_ had gone wrong.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Kazuto's House_

I had just finished my shower and I walked back into my room, now being fully dressed. The shower honestly didn't help me much. Sure, I felt slightly refreshed, but I still felt dead inside. I walked across the room and sat down on my bed. I just sat there, doing nothing and staring across the room for the longest time.

Eventually, my vision became fixated on the pile of items that I had de-shelved out of anger yesterday. I finally stood up and walked across the room, deciding to clean it up. I bent down and picked up the photo that I had gotten in the mail at the beginning of the week. Even though I had no idea where it had come from, I still decided to frame it.

I placed it back in its spot on the shelf, then bent back down to pick up my NerveGear. After examining it, I deduced that it wasn't really damaged. Not that I really cared. I was done with VRMMORPGs. I put it on the rightmost end of the shelf. I then bent down to pick up the other framed photo, the one that had been taken outside the Dicey Café.

The glass of the frame was chipped, but other than that, it was intact. I placed it on the shelf to the left of my NerveGear. After that, I just stood there, staring at the picture for the longest time. We were all so happy back then. I definitely had been happy at that point.

 _We were all happy to be alive_ , I thought as I stared at Sachi, flashing the peace sign at me.

I looked at Asuna who had the biggest smile on her face. She looked so alive and happy. I traced my finger across the glass of the frame and sighed.

"Liz is right, Asuna." I said. "You'd be ashamed of me right now."

I bent down and looked at the final item that was still on the floor: my copy of the manga. It was lying open on the floor, with the cover facing up. I sighed as I picked it up and turned over. I was going to close it, but I stopped when I saw what page it was on. While we were still trapped in SAO, that night that I cheered up Asuna after Yui's "death", the following morning when she thanked me for cheering her up.

It was on that page. And Asuna had the most joyous smile on her face. She looked so happy, so alive. And I don't know how she had done it, but when Sugu went to recreate her smile from that moment for the manga, she nailed it. It really looked like Asuna and it really looked like the real Asuna's smile. That's when it finally hit me.

 _If I could get Asuna out of that game, that was just a bonus. But more than anything else, I want to see her smile again. I want to see that smile again!_

It had finally hit me. I had to free Asuna from ALfheim Online, whatever it takes. I shut the manga and placed it back on the shelf. I then grabbed the NerveGear, praying that it would still work after the topple it had last night.

 _Please work, old friend,_ I thought as I picked it up. _I need your help just one last time!_

I took a breath before I attempted to turn it on and then let out a sigh of relief once I heard it hum to life. I walked over to my bed and sat down as I put the NerveGear on. Once I had put the NerveGear on and made sure it was connected, I laid down on my bed.

"Link start!" I exclaimed with confidence.

 _Suguha_

 _The World Tree_

After that confrontation with Recon, I began to walk down the stairs away from the World Tree. I walked through the city streets all by myself, feeling even worse than usual. I was minding my own business, when I began to hear the fluttering of air and a scream from above. I looked up with surprise to see a familiar Salamander come crashing down to the street. Eventually, after a few seconds, Klein recovered, and he stood up with a smile on his face.

"Damn, I'm still getting the hang of that." He said. "Anyway, it's me!"

He said this as he held his hands out on either side of himself, as if he were a God or something. And after he said that, I walked right past him, not even saying one word to him. As I walked off, I eventually heard him speak to me in an irritated tone.

"Hey!"

I ignored him and kept walking. He quickly ran to catch up with me.

"Hey, Leafa! Erm, Suguha, I'm talking to you!"

"Go away, Klein."

I continued walking as he maintained an equal pace with me.

"Look, I don't know what's going on between you and your brother..."

"It's none of your business." I interrupted him.

"Well, that may be true, but that doesn't give you the right to avoid me!"

"I don't want to talk to Kazuto or any of you anymore."

He went silent and stopped following me.

"But why?" he eventually called out to me. "What did we do?"

I stopped as well and I let out a sigh, before turning to face him.

"It wasn't what you guys did. It's what he did."

"Well, what did he do?"

"I told you, it's none of your business."

"Then why did you say something?"

I shuddered as I turned back around.

"Klein, I just want to be left alone."

I began walking again and I thought that I would be able to get away from him, when I saw a shadow pass above me.

"Hey, where are you going?" a familiar female voice asked.

I sighed and looked up, to see Sachi slowly gliding down from the sky to meet us. The Spriggan eventually landed in front of us with a smile on her face. Once she saw the expression on my face, however, her smile disappeared.

"Leafa? What's wrong?" she asked, before she looked around. "Wait, where's Kirito?"

Klein stepped forward.

"Kiri-Dude and Suguha are having trouble getting along right now it would seem." He said.

I let out a sigh as I turned to face him.

"I thought I told you the things between Kazuto and I are none of your business?"

"Wait, Kazuto?" Sachi asked.

I turned back to look at her and saw a confused expression on her face. That's when a smile spread over her lips.

"Oh my God, Big Sis, is that you?!" she exclaimed.

A light blush appeared on my face after she said that. Sachi always had a thing for calling me "Big Sis", as I was about a year older than her. Once I blushed, that basically confirmed Sachi's question. She ran over to me with lightning speed and caught me in a hug.

"Wow, I can't believe you're actually, I mean I can't believe..."

"Hey, hey, hey." I said as I gently pushed her away. "Let's keep that cuddly stuff to a minimum, okay, Sachi?"

She looked back at me, looking hurt. She took a few steps back.

"L-Leafa, I mean, Sugu, what's wrong between you and Kirito for you to be like this?"

I looked down at the ground.

"I don't want to talk about it."

That's when I heard the chime and I saw from a notification pop up for me, which said, "Kirito is coming online!"

"Hey, Kirito is logging on!" Klein exclaimed. "I thought he gave up..."

"Do you still have his sword?" Sachi asked.

"No, I slipped it back into his inventory when he wasn't paying attention."

As they were talking, I tuned them out completely.

"What is he doing?!" Klein exclaimed.

I looked up, to see that Klein had brought up his map.

"What?" I asked in a glum tone.

Just as Sachi pulled up her map as well, he spoke again.

"He's charging back into The World Tree!"

Slightly curious, I decided to pull up my map.

"Oh my God, you're right!" Sachi exclaimed.

"What do we do, Sugu?"

I turned to look at them.

"What do you mean, "we"? I'm not a part of this anymore. I don't want anything to do with you guys."

"Wow, she's that mad, huh?" Sachi whispered.

"Yeah, she's got her panties in a bunch." Klein whispered back.

I whipped around and slapped Klein on the cheek.

"Ow!" he wailed with pain.

"You had that coming." Sachi replied as she giggled.

"But seriously, we should do something! Kiri-Dude is going to get himself killed!"

I snorted.

"How? This isn't SAO, Klein." I said. "Death in this game doesn't translate back to the real world."

"Well, while that may be true, think about this. Kiri-Dude's going to be working his butt off fighting inside the World Tree all by himself and he won't even be breaking a sweat in here. But in the real world, he'll be sweating profusely as he fights in here. He could push himself so hard that he could have a heart attack irl!"

I put my finger to my chin.

"Maybe." I whispered.

"We have to help him!" Sachi chimed in. "We can't let him do this alone!"

"Maybe." I repeated myself.

"Suguha, I know you're mad at him, but just think!" he exclaimed. "He's pushing himself too hard and without our help, he could put tremendous amounts of stress on his body! Please! If you won't do this for you, do it for him! You have to help us fight with him!"

I just stared back at him, as he stared back with a determined look on his face. Eventually, I gave in and sighed.

"I'll log out and check on him in the real world." I said as I swiped down, opening my menu. "While I do that, you guys stay in here and get anyone that you can to help. I'll be back soon."

Klein clasped his hands together.

"Oh, thank you, Sugu! Thank you!"

I didn't smile or anything, I retained my glum look.

"Don't thank me yet." I said, before pressing the log out button.

 _Kazuto's House_

Once I came to, I took off the AmuSphere and sat up. I got up from the bed and paced to my door. I opened my door, walked to Kazuto's room and entered without knocking. I saw him lying on his bed, with his old NerveGear on. I paced over to his bed to get a better look at him. Just as Klein had suspected, he was sweating rather heavily.

"Damn it, Kazuto." I muttered as I grit my teeth. "I have to pull you out of ALO!"

I reached out my hand to begin pulling the NerveGear, but then I stopped myself. I began to retract my hand as a thought entered my mind.

 _Back when they were trapped in SAO, any attempts to log the players out in the real world would kill them. The microwave emitters in the rig would fry the brain, ending their life. What if those protocols are still in place somehow? Could attempting to remove his NerveGear harm Kazuto or even worse, kill him?_

I cursed once more.

"Kazuto, why would you push yourself like this?"

I left the room, this time running as I closed the door behind me. I got back to my room and I was about to put my AmuSphere back on, when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the note that he had left me. I snatched it up and read it without hesitation. Once I finished reading the note, it finally hit me. I put down the note.

 _They're right. Kazuto can't do this on his own and he needs our help. He needs my help. Just like he wants to make things right, I should want to make things right. And I will._

I laid back down on my bed and grabbed the AmuSphere. I put it back on and let out a sigh.

"Link start!"

 _Kirito_

 _The World Tree_

Once I had logged back into ALfheim Online, I appeared on the steps up to The World Tree, the place I had been at when I logged out the night before. I was about to start running up the steps, but stopped when something occurred to me.

 _Klein still has my sword,_ I thought. _And I can't just go to him and ask to get it back..._

I let out a sigh as I shrugged.

"I'll just buy another sword." I said as I opened my inventory. "I'll just see how much..."

I cut myself off when I saw something that surprised me. My sword was back in my inventory!

 _Klein must have slipped it back into my inventory and I didn't notice..._

I shrugged as I equipped it and made sure that it was strapped onto my back, before I began jogging up the steps. Once I was back in front of the giant double doors that led to the Tree's interior, I stopped.

"Yui," I spoke out loud. "are you there?"

After a couple seconds, the pixie appeared in her miniature form, hovering just slightly above my shoulder.

"Hi, Daddy! What is it?" she asked.

A light blush appeared on my cheeks.

"Hey, Yui. I hope you're not mad at me about yesterday."

A light smile appeared on her face.

"Of course not, Daddy! I knew that you needed some time to clear your head and that you'd be back eventually!"

I smiled back at her, before a more serious look came onto my face.

"Yui, I need any information you can give me on the Tree's Guardians. And their archer buddies, too."

Yui gazed at me for a brief second before she answered.

"The stats for one aren't very high, but that's not the problem. They're just too many of them. You're unlikely to survive for long by yourself once the archers begin spawning."

I chuckled.

"Thanks for the tip."

"The way I see it, this quest was designed to be nearly impossible to finish."

"Ah, you said "nearly impossible". So, that must mean that it can be done. Right?"

"Well, possibly. But this quest was not meant to be done solo."

"I know that. And I don't care what it takes, I have to get Asuna out of there! Are you sure that she's up there?"

"Positive! I don't know how or why, but it's as if I can sense her! Mommy's up there!"

"All of those Guardians and archers lead up to a unbeatable boss." I said as I took a breath.

"Yes! But don't forget, your skills and XP are really high! So, maybe with a burst of speed, you can smash right through them! If anyone can do this, I know it's you, Daddy!"

I nodded at her with a smile on my face. I turned back to look at the door.

 _I've run out of time,_ I thought to myself. _I have to do this today! I have to give it my all and fight as hard as I can! It's all or nothing!_

"Yui, like I told you yesterday, keep your head down." I commanded.

I rushed forward toward the double doors and tapped it, accepting the prompt without hesitation. As soon as the doors opened, I rushed inside. I drew my sword and stood in the darkness as the doors closed behind me, waiting. Once the lights came on and the first Guardian appeared, I moved. I burst forward and slashed my sword across his chest without even thinking.

Two more Guardians intersected me as I vanquished their friend. Before they could reach me, I flipped out of the way, causing them to smash into each other. I cut through both of their legs before they could recover, and they fell to the ground in a heap. I then mercilessly sank my sword into one of the Guardian's backs, thus killing the other one as well.

I looked up at the hatch at the top of the room and let out a growl as more Guardians closed in on me. I looked at the wall of the interior.

 _Maybe if I get a running start on the wall, I can get a burst of speed and fly the rest of the way up to the hatch!_

I backed up and brought my sword up, blocking a Guardian's strike as he rushed down to hit me. I kicked him away and drove my sword into his stomach. Once he had died, I backed up once more. I started running towards the wall and I eventually jumped onto it, beginning to run up it. One of the Guardians swooped in to attack me, but I just cut him down as he reached me.

I continued running up the wall for several more seconds and then the archers began to appear. I kicked off of the wall and began to fly towards the hatch, dodging arrow after arrow that was shot at me. As I continued to fly, three of the Guardians followed closely behind me. I whipped around in midair and let out a yell of fury as I dashed towards them. Once I reached them, I cut through one of them with my sword. I cut through his arm and then moved to cut the other one in half.

I sunk my sword into the last Guardian's chest and continued flying up towards the hatch. I was maybe just halfway past it, when I was shot in the back by an arrow. Once that happened, I my flight was immediately stopped, and I fell all the way to the ground.

 _Damn archers!_

Several Guardians began to encircle me as I stood up with my sword in hand. Once one of them moved forward, I rushed forward as well. I blocked his strike with my sword and cut him down once he retracted his blade. I didn't see one of the Guardians as they approached from my right and I was hit because of it. I watched as my HP began to slightly diminish. I grit my teeth with anger as I raised my sword.

"Just die!" I exclaimed as I charged forward.

I dashed forward and cut through the Guardian in front of me. As I did that, I left myself open and the Guardian behind me struck me from behind. More of my HP drained. I finished up dispatching the Guardian in front of me and then turned to tend to the one who had just attacked me.

I struck him down with my sword and proceeded to vanquish the remaining Guardians. Once all of the Guardians around me had been dispatched, I leaped into the air once more. My wings flapped as I flew upwards towards the hatch. Upon getting anywhere near close to the hatch, I was once again nailed with several arrows, sending me all the way back down once more. Upon landing, more Guardians began to approach me.

"Come on," I spat with anger as I got up. "come on, you bastards! I'll take you all on! Come on!"

I charged forward with a yell of fury and easily decapitated one of the Guardians with furiosity. As one of the Guardians attempted a sneak attack, I drove my sword backwards and caught him. After I finished that one, another Guardian attempted to land a strike on me. I blocked his blade with mine and pushed him back. Once he faltered and I saw an opportunity, I slashed across his leg. I spun around as the remaining three Guardians began to close in.

 _Charge in, take the one in the middle and smash the ones on the left and right together in the confusion!_

I narrowed my eyes as I realized my strategy. I charged forward, unrelenting. I sent a diagonal slash across the middle one's chest and he was vanquished immediately. I quickly sheathed my sword, grabbed the two remaining Guardians and slammed them together. After they were on the ground and I had brought my sword back out, I skewered them in their place.

 _You will not prevent me from reaching Asuna!_

"You will not!" I exclaimed as I turned back around. "You will not!"

I got into another running spot, jumped and took flight once more. My wings flapped once more as they carried me up towards the hatch. I strained my back muscles to move faster.

 _Faster,_ I thought as I narrowed my eyes. _I have to move faster!_

That's when something clicked. It was as if I were seeing red now. It was like I was that enraged. I soared higher and higher, so close to the hatch and that's when I was shot at with more arrows. Miniscule bits of HP were drained, but I didn't stop. My HP was still in the green, so I was fine.

I was getting so close to the hatch; I could practically touch it! Mere seconds later and I finally touched down on it, being upside down as I tried to pull the thing open. Only problem was, the damn thing wouldn't budge! I tried to pull harder and that's when it happened. It felt as though my blood ran cold as one of the Guardian's swords pierced my chest. I looked down at the blade that was protruding from my chest, as a significant chunk of my HP disappeared.

I fell from the hatch, all the way back down to the floor. As I landed, my sword cluttered elsewhere. When I finally sat up, I noticed that the blade was still sunk in my chest. Being pierced by that blade brought my HP down to the yellow warning zone. Without even thinking, I grabbed the hilt of the sword and began to forcefully pull it out of my chest.

For some reason, once I had gotten the sword out, my HP rapidly diminished, falling into the critical red zone. I cast the sword across the room and refused to get up from my position sitting on my knees in a defeated stance. And going against what I said, Yui eventually appeared from my coat pocket and took her usual place, hovering above my shoulder.

"What are you doing, Daddy?!" she exclaimed. "Get up!"

I let out a depressed sigh.

"No, Yui." I said. "I was right about what I said yesterday. I can't save Asuna, I'll never get close to her. I'm just as weak in here as I am in the real world."

Yui may have spoken again, but she didn't get the chance to. Suddenly out of nowhere, my sword was kicked across the floor, eventually hitting my foot and coming to a stop.

"Huh?" I grunted with surprise.

"Get up, Kazuto." A familiar female voice said.

I looked up, to see Leafa/Sugu standing above me, offering her hand to me. And she wasn't alone. There were five other players with her.

"There's so many of them!" Yui let out in a shy squeak, before disappearing back into my coat pocket.

Leafa/Sugu seemed to be at the forefront of the six players that were now in The World Tree with me. Klein was with her and along with him, there was also Lisbeth, who played as a Leprechaun. Sachi was there, in her Spriggan form. Agil was here as well, playing as a Gnome. There was also a guy with blue hair with them. I think their race are called the Undines?

I finally took Sugu's hand and she pulled me back up to my feet. As I got back to my feet, I grabbed my sword. That's when it finally hit me. They could hit me as hard as they could, they could knock me down as many times as they wanted. But at the end of the day, no matter how hard they hit me, no matter how many times I was knocked down, I'd get back up and continue fighting!

We were all just standing here, and I had no idea how we weren't being attacked right now. I finally turned my attention back to the Undine with blue hair. He looked familiar and I felt like I had seen his face before. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I had seen his face before. He had been the guy that was at the private party at the Dicey Café last month, the guy I didn't know! And now, with the blue hair, I finally realized where I knew this guy from. He was an SAO survivor, like me and my friends. It was Diavel! I stepped up to him.

"Oh my God, you were the guy at the private party that I didn't recognize." I said. "I'm sorry that I..."

Diavel put up his hand with a smile on his face, signaling for me to stop.

"Hey, don't sweat it. It's not like we ever hung out in SAO." He said. "Anyway, long time no see, Kirito!"

"Well, what are you doing here?" I asked.

"I was invited to the private party because one of your friends tracked me down. When I was told that Asuna may be trapped in ALO, I decided that this may be how I can pay you back for saving my life in SAO!"

I chuckled.

"I mean, the stakes were different then. You don't owe me for saving your life! It was a common courtesy!"

I turned back to Sugu, my cheeks feeling hot as I did.

"So, does this mean we're good again?" I asked.

She looked at me with the same saddened look, before she eventually smiled at me.

"We'll talk about that later." She said at last. "Right now, the main focus is getting Asuna out of ALO!"

"Right." I said as I turned back to face my five other friends. "Guys, I've been really hard-headed lately and I will gladly take any "I told you so"s after this is over."

I turned back around to face the impending wave of Guardians that were finally approaching.

"Leafa's right." I said. "We have to free Asuna. Whatever it takes."

"Whatever it takes!" my six friends behind me triumphantly exclaimed in unison.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for this chapter! Does it feel tacky, cliché or weird, for them to all come together at the end like that? I hope that you don't think it's a bad thing. I really like how this came out.

* So, there's a big question that I have. And that question is if it's okay for Kirito to have a moment of weakness like this. Is it okay for him to refuse to believe in himself? I would really like to know your opinion on this.

* Also, I know that it might be a bit confusing for everyone to be in The World Tree. Like, how did they all get there? That will be explained in the coming chapters. So, hopefully you won't be confused for long. If you are, that is.

* I think that's all of the stuff I wanted to mention. So, with that being said, I'm going to go. Have a fantastic rest of your day and bye!

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _GameLord The Hitman (Chapter 25): Two things I'm honestly not big on: 1. Why did Kirito give up after the first try I mean, he kept going in the original version. If anything, he has LESS of a reason to give up here. He's got allies who can help him (three other fighters and at least one healer), he did as good of a job in the Light Novel/Anime, he has literally no other leads other than ALO and he practically KNOWS Asuna's up there based on Yui's reaction and the card._

 _It just doesn't make any sense to me, especially when he kept going in the original version when he had less of a chance. 2. I feel that Sugu's feelings for Kirito didn't get nearly as enough build-up to invoke that kind of reaction from her. I mean, unless my memories are hazy, It was only mentioned once in the previous chapter... that's it._

 _Hell I thought you just did away with her crush entirely, so this feels like it comes out of left field. To me, both of these seem like very poorly done attempts at drama, the first feeling necessary and the second the anime/light novel just did better. P.S. No, Sinon and Klein never got together and there have been no hints that they're gonna get together in the novels. No disrespect to anyone who actually ships them, I just have no clue where you heard that from._

Thanks, GameLord. So, I respect your opinion. I'll just say that first. As for Kirito giving up, it wasn't permanent as you will have seen here. I was trying to convey that it's okay for the protagonist to have a moment of weakness, before bouncing back. But who knows? Maybe my attempt at this really was unnecessary and dumb. If anyone thinks that this is the case, I don't blame you.

I was just trying something new and at the time of writing these chapters, I thought they were good ideas. And I still do. But as I said before, maybe I was in the wrong here. Maybe these two chapters are completely unnecessary. Maybe I should have gone with something else. If that's what you think, then that's fine with me. As for Sugu's crush on Kirito, it kind of was put in just to put it in.

Don't get me wrong, I hate that bit of plot from the light novel, manga and anime. But I couldn't decide if I wanted to omit that entirely, or include it. I didn't know if readers would be upset if I left that out. So, at the end of the day, I just put it in for the hell of it and hoped for the best. I don't remember where I saw/read the whole Sinon/Klein thing, I really don't. It was months ago at this point.

That's all I have for you. As I said, I was just trying something different with these chapters. I would like to think that I've changed Fairy Dance for the better. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe this version isn't better at all. Maybe it's worse than the original, even. And if you do think that this is worse, than that's fine. Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito and friends struggle in their battle to the top of The World Tree. Just as when it seems that he and Yui will never be reunited with Asuna, Kirito is able to get to the top of The World Tree, thanks to the help of an old friend.


	27. Chapter 27: Gilded Hero: Part 1

Chapter 27: Gilded Hero: Part One

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Seven. So, you may see that this chapter has been split into two parts. You may be confused by that.

* I've decided that I'm going to split this episode into two parts. This part will consist of the battle to get to the top of The World Tree. And next chapter will consist of Kirito finally confronting Oberon the Fairy King. Maybe you think that's a weird way to do it. But that's the way it'll go.

* So, I've said all that I can say. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. With that said, let's get right into it.

* Oh, one more thing. Um, it would mean a lot to me if any readers who care enough stay after the Review Responses and the Next Chapter entry. I have something that I want to be read. That's all. On with the chapter.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _ALfheim, Neutral Territory – Central Capital, Arun, The World Tree – December 13_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Three Days Remaining_

I still couldn't believe it. Here I was within The World Tree, on the verge of giving up again and out of the blue, my spirits are uplifted. Thanks to my sister and my friends. Leafa/Sugu, Klein, Lisbeth, Sachi, Agil and fellow SAO survivor, Diavel. They were all here, uplifting my spirits and willing to fight with me.

Hell, Diavel may not have even known who Asuna was or how important she was to me and even still, he was here. After Leafa/Sugu had let go of me, I felt unsteady and wobbly on my feet. I began to hear her chant, until a faint green glow enveloped my entire body. I then felt a surge of energy as my HP was refilled. I let out a sigh of relief as I stood up straight once more.

"Oh, man! That feels _so much_ better!" I exclaimed as I turned to look at Leafa/Sugu with a smile. "Thanks, Sugu!"

She looked back at me with an uneasy look, before returning my smile.

"Let's stick to avatar names for now." She said as she stepped forward and lightly punched my arm. "Okay, Kirito?"

I nodded, understanding the awkward tension between us.

"Okay, Leafa."

I turned to Klein, knowing that there wasn't a lot of time before our group of seven would face an assault of Guardians.

"Alright, Klein." I asked. "What have we got?"

Klein pulled his katana, which made me ready my sword once again.

"Easily over a hundred of your pals rushing in our direction, all of them most likely pissed the hell off."

I snorted.

"Tell me something I don't know."

"Um, were definitely screwed?"

"I was one person before, Klein. Now, we're seven."

He didn't say anything as the Guardians continued to get closer. I narrowed my eyes.

"Get ready." I said as I turned away from him.

"You got it."

I looked at the five remaining players in front of me. I didn't have long to come up with a plan, so I shouted out what came to mind the quickest.

"Leafa, you're our best fighter when it comes to aerial combat! Try to keep some of the Guardians at bay and watch out for anyone who needs healing!"

She nodded without a word and took off into the air after her wings appeared on her back. I turned to Lisbeth next.

"Liz, I hope you're still good with a mace!" I replied.

She smirked at me as she equipped a mace similar to the one I had seen her with in SAO.

"Well, I guess we're about to find out!"

She flew off without another word to me. Next, I looked at Sachi, who had a spear in her hand. I didn't bother to ask where she had gotten it. She could have easily bought it after the events of yesterday.

"Sachi, there's an archer variant of the Guardians. I want you to use that spear to delay their ranged attacks!"

She nodded with a smile and took off. I turned to Agil next, who was wielding an axe.

"Agil, put that axe to good use and crush anything that tries to get close to us!"

He smiled as he hefted his axe.

"You got it, brother!"

As everyone else had before him, Agil then took off. I turned lastly to Diavel. As I looked at him, one of my early memories from SAO flashed before my eyes. A meeting about the Floor One Boss, one month into SAO.

 _My name is Diavel,_ he had said that day. _And in this game, the job I rule is knight!_

Diavel smiled at me as my blast to the past ended. I grinned back at him.

"Diavel, I hope that you still see yourself as a knight!"

He continued to smile as he pulled a sword out. It looked like a pretty standard sword, but I knew better. Diavel was skilled in SAO, so there was no doubt in my mind that he would be able to do great things with that sword.

"What about you, Kirito?"

I turned back to look at the hatch on the ceiling overhead. I lifted my sword as my smile disappeared.

"I'm going straight in."

He and Klein both let out a whistle.

"That's a lot of Guardians to fight through, Kiri-Dude."

I narrowed my eyes.

"Nothing will stop me from seeing Asuna again. I can see that now."

Neither of them said anything.

"Let's get to work." I replied as I kicked off of the ground.

The three of us flew toward the horde of enemies in front of us. As we approached, three of them began to move forward with a sudden burst of speed. I moved to the left as the Guardian headed towards me was about to pass and I cut him down. As Klein and Diavel disposed of their respective pursuers, I looked up at the rest of my friends. All of them were doing pretty well for themselves.

Lisbeth swung her mace in an underhand technique and decapitated one of the Guardians. Sachi threw her spear at one of the archers and impaled the Guardian before it had a chance to take its shot. Agil used his axe to disarm one Guardian and then proceeded to demolish him. And meanwhile, Leafa was weaving in and out of the grasps of several Guardians, confusing them and dealing damage as she passed.

I focused my attention back to the enemies ahead of us. There was a small group of them just headed for me alone. I let out a yell of anger as I flew with a burst of speed towards them. I put my sword to work as I got close to them and cut all of them down. Suddenly, Leafa flew down to me.

"You have six players helping you now, you know." She replied. "So, don't get cocky!"

I chuckled as I waited for the next attack to come.

"I'm not." I replied.

Once the next Guardian came for me, I severed him at the waist.

"Where's that friend of yours?" I asked. "Recon? Wouldn't he be willing to help?"

She looked embarrassed and struck down a Guardian before answering.

"I did something stupid. I said something stupid to him. I did something that I regret."

I looked at her with a sort of blank face.

"I'm sure that it'll work out for you." I said at last.

"Brace yourself, guys!" Klein exclaimed. "There's still more coming!"

I could see it. Another wave of Guardians was approaching. It didn't make sense to me why we were facing waves of them at a time. Why didn't they all just face us at once? It would be a whole lot easier than having one wave at a time fight us. But I wasn't complaining about that. Facing all of them head on would prove to be more than difficult.

I watched as even more of the Guardians began to spawn in. They began to close in on us. I rushed forward to attack before they could be able to. I didn't let the group of enemies intimidate me for long. I took off one Guardian's head and another one's arm. I let out a scream of surprise as one flew right at me. Before I could strike, it was suddenly killed by something else.

Once the Guardian's form disappeared, I saw Sachi hovering several lengths ahead of me, empty handed. It dawned on me that she must have thrown her spear at the Guardian. I nodded my thanks to her and she nodded back. I realized then just how many of the Guardians there were. They just kept coming!

A group of them rushed toward me and I tried to parry all of their strikes. However, one of them managed to strike me shoulder and I saw my HP dip. Klein took notice of this.

"Kiri-Dude! Are you okay?"

"I'm hit!" I exclaimed. "But I'm okay for now!"

Just as I said that, I got hit by two other Guardians. My HP went down further.

"Leafa!" I exclaimed. "Now would be a great time to heal me!"

A few seconds later, I saw my body become enveloped by a faint green glow. After that, my HP shot back up.

"Thank you!"

I looked back at the Guardians still appearing.

 _There's too many of them,_ I realized.

I flew over to Klein and Diavel.

"Hey, guys. We may have to rethink this."

Klein parried a Guardian's strike and stabbed through its chest with his katana.

"What do you mean?"

I myself parried a Guardian's strike as it rushed in for a hit on me. I sent a cut across its waist, severing it in half.

"There's too many of them." I said. "We may have to stop and try again later."

"That's quitter talk, Kirito." Diavel said. "And it's very unlike you."

I sighed at his response.

"Look, I know how I sound! But look at us! We're seven against hundreds! How long can we possibly last?"

"I'm not letting you just give up, Kiri-Dude!" Klein exclaimed.

"I'm telling you, there's too many of them!"

"I can't let you do it, man."

Neither of them were having my thoughts. I held my sword out in front of me in an attempt to block the incoming attack. The Guardian rushed in and I blocked his strike. I then did my best to kick him away from me, although I didn't do so well, as I was in midair. As I was barely able to kick the Guardian away, Diavel came in for the killing blow.

"Thanks." I said with a sigh.

"Don't mention it."

I backed up a little bit to be with my thoughts. There's no way that we can do this. We're going to exhaust ourselves and we've barely even started yet! We might as well just give up.

 _Now, now, now,_ an unfamiliar voice entered my head. _That's not the Kirito that I knew._

I stopped dead in my tracks. That wasn't a voice I knew. Actually, scratch that. I vaguely recognized the voice, yet I couldn't even begin to fathom where I had heard it before. Before I could question it, the voice spoke some more.

 _You want to give up? You didn't give up when you knew that you couldn't defeat me with strength alone. Instead, you came up with a new strategy. You improvised in the face of near defeat. You are a true warrior if I've ever seen one._ _So, tell me Kirito. Who are you?_

"I didn't give up when I knew that strength alone couldn't defeat you?" I whispered to myself as I blocked yet another strike.

That's when it dawned on me.

"Wait, Akihiko Kayaba?"

There was silence in my head now. I shook my head.

"No, that's impossible. You can't... You're not... You're dead."

 _Who are you, Kirito?_ _Are you the quitter? Or the true warrior?_

I let out a sigh.

 _Why was I so determined to give up again? Did I really believe that victory was that farfetched? Was it really so hard for me to believe that when I had my friends with me, we were capable of anything?_

I flashed back to the very first day of SAO.

 _You'd be much more likely not to die if you run with others. If you travel by yourself, you could easily find yourself in a pinch and you may not be able to get yourself out of it._

Klein himself had told me on the first day of SAO that having other people with you was a good thing. My thoughts turned to Sachi. She didn't even have to be here! She got over her fears of VRMMOs to come here and help us! My thoughts finally circled around to Lisbeth.

 _Kirito, you can't just give up on Asuna! After everything that girl has done for you, you owe it to her to at least give this another shot!_

She was absolutely right. I couldn't give up. Not again. Never again.

 _Well, then? Who are you, Kirito? Quitter or true warrior?_

I let out a small breath.

"I am a true warrior." I whispered to myself.

The feeling of the sword in my hand then evaporated. And on top of that, the weight on my back increased. It couldn't have been much, but it was significant. I couldn't believe my eyes, the sword that had been in my hand was gone. I wasn't the only one who noticed this.

"Kirito..." Diavel spoke, only to be interrupted by Klein.

"What's with your back?!"

Curious, I put my hands over my shoulders and felt around. And I felt not one, but two hilts! I pulled two swords from the scabbards on my back. And not just any two swords. They were the swords that I had used in SAO!

 _How was this possible?!_

"Um, are we all seeing the same thing?!" Klein asked.

I couldn't say anything and Diavel didn't say anything either.

 _Now, use this gift to strike fear into the hearts of your enemies!_

I began to think.

 _Could Akihiko Kayaba be responsible for this? If he could give me these swords, it didn't make sense! How could he? He was dead!_

I didn't have time to voice my questions.

"Uh, Kirito?" Klein asked. "Are you going to stand there or are you going continue fighting?"

"Oh, right." I replied. "Here goes nothing!"

I dashed forward and cut down the group of Guardians in front of me with overwhelming ease. It was the same as SAO. I was moving much faster that I realistically should have been able to. My damage output was off the charts. I was cutting down Guardian after Guardian like it was nobody's business. I sent myself flying forward, sinking one of my swords into a Guardian's chest, as I used my other one to sever another in half across the waist. I pulled away as I felt a familiar feeling rush through me. Adrenaline.

 _Come on, you bastards! Give me a real fight!_

"Oh, come on! You're duel wielding again?!" Lisbeth exclaimed. "How is that possible?!"

"Oh, man!" Agil chimed in. "That just isn't right!"

I didn't know how I was duel wielding right now. I didn't have an explanation for what was happening. The only thing that I could think is that Akihiko Kayaba had something to do with this. But even if that was the case, it didn't make any sense. However, I wasn't thinking of the fact that I was duel wielding again. I had realized something. As long as I had these swords, whoever was holding Asuna, they didn't stand a chance. I was getting her back, today. Not tomorrow, not a week from now. Today.

 _Oberon The Fairy King_

I was sitting on my throne at the top of The World Tree, watching a feed of footage from the inside of the tree. I sat there, leaning my chin in the palm of my hand, as I smiled at the foolish attempts to clear the tree. A female fairy came to my side and poured an alcoholic drink into my chalice. She looked at me afterward as if she were expecting something. I waved her away.

"Now get the hell out of here." I replied with impatience.

She hurried to turn around and begin walking down the stairs away from my throne. I began to take a drink, but after I looked back at the video feed, I dropped the chalice, spilling it all over the floor. I had just seen something impossible.

"Wait!" I exclaimed. "Get back here!"

She relunctantly turned around to face me. I curled my index finger in a "come here" motion. She slowly made her way back up the stairs.

"Hurry up!" I exclaimed.

She finally made it back to me and I pointed to the video feed. She looked at in and then back to me.

"That's got to be Kirito." She said. "He fits the description given from SAO."

"I know who it is!" I exclaimed with annoyance. "Why in the hell is he duel wielding?! There isn't such a skill in ALfheim!"

She just shrugged.

"Well, aren't you a lot of help?"

"S... Sorry, Sir. I..."

"I don't care if you're sorry! Sorry doesn't get me anything!"

I turned back to the video feed. I shook my head.

"He has to be hacking. There's no other explanation!"

"Sir?"

I turned back to her.

"Get me my security advisor!"

She just stared back at me, with a confused look.

"Why are you still standing here?! Are you deaf?!"

She finally turned and ran back down the stairs. I turned back to the feed and continued to watch the Spriggan slashing through Guardian after Guardian. I put my hands on either sides of my head.

"Where the hell is my security advisor?!"

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

I continued effortlessly killing Guardian after Guardian. Leafa healed me again, although I didn't really need it. I soared up toward the ceiling, cutting down every Guardian that got in my way. Just as the hatch came into sight again, however, a bunch of Guardians converged on my position, slamming into me and sending me down.

Somehow, the slam lowered my HP into the yellow zone. After that, I was skewered by several sword blades. But I didn't let that stop me. I got my swords ready again and prayed that Leafa was paying attention. The space above me closed as more Guardians got in the way, but I wasn't intimidated.

 _Again!_

I burst forward again, disregarding the damage I had taken. Klein and Diavel appeared at my side. Then Agil, Sachi and Lisbeth.

"One more push guys," I replied as my HP shot back up. "We can do this!"

"You bet we can!" Agil chimed in.

A horde of Guardians, easily hundreds, maybe a thousand, came our way.

"Uh, is it too late to panic?" Klein asked.

"Get ready, guys!" I exclaimed.

However, before either of our sides could attack, there was a chorus of yells coming from behind us. We turned around and I saw dozens of Sylph players flying toward us.

"What are the Sylphs doing here?" I asked.

"No way!" Leafa exclaimed. "I didn't think they'd actually make it!"

And the Sylphs weren't the only ones joining the party. Blue, armored dragons were flying into The World Tree.

"Dragons?" Leafa asked.

"No way, the Cait Siths!" Klein chimed in.

"They brought the whole army!"

Just then, a dragon flew past us, with Alicia Rue on its back. As she flew over to us, Sakuya, the Sylph leader joined us at her side.

"Hello there!" she replied with a smile on her face. "I hope we're not late!"

"Yeah, sorry!" Rue chimed in. "We had to hurry to get everything ready after Leafa sent her message, but here we are!"

I turned to look at Leafa, who wasn't looking at me. That was okay. She didn't have to look at me. I think I knew what was going on. They then flew past us and got into a formation ahead of us.

"Okay, Dragoons!" Rue exclaimed. "Get ready to toast these suckas!"

"Sylph warriors!" Sakuya called out. "Prepare to engage the enemy!"

The Guardians began to focus more on the players that had just arrived opposed to us. Some of them were still focused on us, but we weren't being bombarded like earlier.

"Dragon breath, attack!"

Dozens of Guardians around us died in the fire that the dragons unleashed.

"Fenrir Storm, fire at will!"

More Guardians were killed in the blue flashes of light that fired from the swords of the Sylph warriors. There was a huge opening now, however, it wouldn't last for long. Leafa and I looked at each other, as if we both thought the same thing. Leafa nodded at me as I looked at her.

"Go now, Kirito. Go before your window closes!"

I wanted to. I wanted so badly to fly to that hatch, now that it was unguarded. But I couldn't bring myself to leave my friends behind. I turned to look at all of them.

"But how can I turn my back and leave you guys behind? After what you did for me? None of you even have to be here!"

Leafa just smiled at me.

"If we die here, then that's okay! We'll just respawn! You have to focus on freeing Asuna!"

She was right. I couldn't allow myself to get hung up on this. My window wouldn't be open forever. I had to move now. And so, I began to fly up towards the hatch. I eventually stopped and turned around with a smile on my face.

"Thanks, you guys." I replied. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

They all smiled back at me and Klein eventually spoke.

"Save Asuna now, thank us later!"

I nodded without a word and I turned again. I flew towards the hatch, not once looking back. I eventually reached the hatch, above a layer of fog. I could no longer hear anything from below me. However, it wouldn't open.

"Damn it!"

 _Now, what do I do?_

I slammed both of my swords down into the creases of the hatch, but that did nothing. I pulled out and sighed.

"Yui, are you there?"

The pixie appeared in her usual spot, hovering above my shoulder.

"Yep! What is it, Daddy?"

"I can't get the hatch to open, do you know how to do it?"

She flew down and sat herself down on the hatch and went silent for a few seconds.

"Daddy, something strange is going on." She spoke again. "This door isn't locked by a quest flag!"

I just blinked.

"What?"

"It's locked by the system administrator!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Restricted access! This door was never intended to be opened by a player!"

I let out a gasp of surprise now. My surprise was short lived, as more Guardians began to spawn in. I watched as the Guardians continued to spawn in. I wouldn't survive for long if I didn't think of something quick. That's when I remembered the card that was in my possession.

"No, wait. That's it!"

I equipped the card and held it out to her.

"Yui, see if this will do anything!"

She touched it without a word, and it lit up light a circuit board. Eventually, the lights faded, and she spoke.

"I'm transferring the code!"

Seconds later, the hatch began to open. I watched as a light glowed from within.

"Daddy, we're going to be teleported! Give me your hand!"

I gave her my hand and we eventually disappeared into a flash of light.

 _Sometime Later – The Floating City_

"Daddy! Daddy! Wake up!"

I eventually opened my eyes, to see Yui sitting in front of me, in her normal form.

"Yui? Where are we?"

"I don't know. There's no mapping data available."

I looked around us. We were in a long tunnel, lit by white light. It was a somewhat overwhelming sight.

"Do you know where Asuna is?"

"Yes. She's close. Very close, in fact."

She let out a gasp and then stood up.

"Come on!"

She started to run, and I was forced to stand as well. As I stood up, the swords in my hands evaporated into bits of light. I stared at my now empty hands.

 _I've done my part. Now you must do yours._

The sword that I had been using for most of my time in ALO was now back in my scabbard. I could feel it. Kayaba was behind the whole duel wielding thing, I knew now. But I still couldn't wrap my head around it.

"Come on, Daddy!" Yui called from ahead of me.

I snapped myself out of my thoughts and began to follow her. Yui eventually came to stop and put her hands on a wall. Part of the wall then disappeared, revealing a doorway. We ran into another tunnel lit by blinding white light. Only seconds later, we came to another door. Be both pushed on it until it dissipated. We finally found ourselves outside in the branches of The Tree. However, there was no Floating City like Leafa had said there would be.

"Is this it?" I asked with skepticism. "Is this the top of The World Tree?"

I turned around and still saw nothing that indicated a city.

"There's supposed to be a city up here. Was this whole thing a lie? Was there never any "Grand Quest"?"

I felt Yui tug at my sleeve. I looked down at her, to see that she had a worried expression on her face. I allowed a gentle smile to come to my face.

"Sorry, Yui. I just lost my train of thought. Come on. Let's go find Asuna."

"Mmm-Hmm." She nodded.

I looked up and around, and eventually spotted something shimmering in the distance. The birdcage. I tugged on Yui's hand.

"Let's go."

We then took off down the path again, looking for a way up to the cage. As we ran, I looked at the birdcage to our right. I could barely see a female player with long brown hair, sitting with her head down in the cage. It had to be Asuna. It had to! There was no way that it wasn't her.

 _Just hold on for a little longer, Asuna,_ I thought. _We'll be there soon!_

Just as we arrived at the door of the cage, it seemed as though the sun was beginning to set. She was inside the cage, hunched over a bed and resting her head on it.

"Mommy!" Yui exclaimed.

The girl looked up at us and I confirmed it. Her hairstyle was a little different and she was wearing a wedding dress, with a veil on her head, but I knew. It was Asuna.

"Mommy!" Yui said again, this time in a happy tone.

Asuna put her hands to her mouth and tears began to roll down her cheeks, as if she couldn't believe what was happening right now. She took one step forward, but stopped. Yui put her hand on the cage and the door just disappeared.

"Mommy!" she exclaimed again, as she ran into the cage.

"Yui!" Asuna called out to the girl, the fact that she remembered her being obvious.

Yui reached Asuna and hugged her.

"Mommy..." Yui mumbled as Asuna embraced her. "Mommy, mommy!"

She kept repeating that word over and over, as if she couldn't believe that we had been reunited. I finally decided to walk into the cage myself. Asuna finally looked up at me, with a smile on her face. I couldn't help but smile back as I stopped in my place. She began to wipe the tears from her eyes, before she looked at me once more.

"Kirito." She said my name at last.

I began to walk forward again.

"Asuna." I said her name as well.

She put her hand on my cheek and I circled my arm around her, resting my hand on her back. And we hugged, with Yui in between us. We rested our foreheads against one another.

"I am so sorry that it took me a while." I whispered. "And that I didn't come looking for you right away. I had no idea that you were even..."

I felt her shake her head.

"No, it's okay. Really. I knew that you'd eventually come for me."

After a second or two more, I pulled my head away from hers and looked at her with a smile on my face.

"Well, are you ready to go home now?" I asked.

She nodded. I looked down at Yui.

"Hey, Yui, can you log Asuna out from here?"

"Uh-uh." She shook her head. "Her status is locked by complicated codes that I don't have access to! We'll need to find a system console to bypass them!"

Asuna perked up just now.

"I found a system console down in the lab..."

Before she could finish, the sky darkened outside of the cage, accompanied by a weird noise. Any hint of the Tree was gone and with it, the birdcage, too. We were now standing in a vast expanse of darkness.

"Mommy, I'm scared!" Yui exclaimed as her audio began cutting out. "Mommy!"

Her form then shattered into hundreds of pixels and disappeared.

"Yui!" I called out with concern.

I looked at Asuna.

"What is going on?!"

She shook her head.

"I don't know! Yui, where are you?!"

Before either of us could say anything else, it happened. That's when we heard the cackle.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Louis XII (Chapter 3): what is the point of saving Diabel if it is to change nothing? It seemed forced in my opinion, like trying to stay true to the cannon at all costs? it seems like a half-assed idea, far too forced to be credible. and why wouldn't Kirito know that Diavel was also a beta tester? on the contrary Kirito knew that Diavel was a beta tester lol! the beater event was ridiculous, not very credible!_

 _why does Kibaou carry the blame on beta testers? when they too are trapped and many of them despite their knowledge are dead? Kirito therefore has no reason to isolate himself lol! one wonders if the author has ever touched a video game in his life? even for Sachi? it's respectful to Sachi to save her if it's for nothing to do with her! one of the reasons I love Sachi is because I always thought Kirito should have stayed with her and probably fallen in love if Sachi had survived._

 _exactly why the author kills her in the anime / novel! he didn't want a three way relationship between Kirito / Sachi / Asuna! I find it disrespectful to choose to save her but to leave Sachi like an old sock, and to deliberately choose Asuna that's my feeling. it's like two-three authors they introduce Suguha in Aincrad ... but choose Kirisuna ?! totally disregarding the feelings that Suguha has for Kazuto!_

 _same impression here, reinforced by the fact that you have switched the tag from Sachi to ... Suguha? which seems even more disrespectful towards this poor Suguha! sigh_

Um, thanks, Louis. Oh, my lord. Where do I begin? Um, the point of saving Diavel... When I was writing Chapter Two, I was thinking if Diavel really had to die. And my thought was no, he didn't have to die. I thought that I could write off his death and give him character development at a later date. And that's also what the whole thing with Sachi was, but we'll get to that later.

And I don't know why Kirito didn't know that Diavel was a beta tester, in this version. I forgot my reasoning ages ago. I know as the writer, that that's not a good thing, but I honestly don't care. Kirito does too have reason for leaving. Why would he want to be in Diavel's group if someone like Kibaou was around?

If there was a person in someone's group that despised you, would you even want to be part of that group? Are you following me or am I just spouting meaningless words? And actually, I to have touched a video game in real life! I've been playing video games since I was in preschool! I mean, my Gamerscore on Xbox is 39,668!

I'm sure that says a lot about what I like doing with my free time, but whatever. Gaming is one of my favorite past times, so don't tell me that I've never touched a video game! I honestly don't care if I'm not coming off as a nice guy here. I've been torn to bits by negative reviews, so I think I've earned this.

Anyway, onto the deal with Sachi. Sorry that you didn't get the pairing that you would have preferred. That's all I will say on that front. In my opinion, Sachi being alive and getting character development that she wouldn't have gotten beforehand is better than her being dead and getting nothing at all. That's just my opinion.

And the reason that I changed the character tag from Sachi to Suguha/Leafa, is because of the plot of Fairy Dance. Starting off in Fairy Dance, Sachi hardly makes an appearance and she doesn't show up to help until later, because of her getting over her fear of VRMMOs. So, because of her limited appearance in this arc and Suguha/Leafa appearing more than Sachi, I had to change the character tag.

In my opinion, Sachi became a side character in this arc, while Suguha became a main character. I don't expect you to understand that, but that's my answer. So, thanks for the review, I guess.

 _Louis XII (Chapter 26): 1) why Kirito decides to give up? unlike the canon, he has allies to help him? 2) I really hated that you slashed / slaughtered Suguha's feelings in an even worse way than in the novel / anime! because unlike your story, it was better done. Suguha's feelings are part of her core character and it was really insulting to her because it was poorly done._

 _I find that trying too hard to stick to the canon makes your story cringeworthy! at times it becomes even ridiculous I have the impression of re-reading Progressive which is a rewrite of the Aincrad Arc by the author himself. heavy focus on Kirisuna same impression here, Sachi is saved but still discarded for the good of Asuna? same for Suguha?_

 _Kirito x Sachi and Suguha would have made a much better couple in my opinion please don't change the tags if it is to disrespect their characters! I find it insulting! and or did you see that Klein and Shinon was one thing? OxO you must have a lot of imagination_

Thanks, again, Louis. Kirito gives up because I thought it was okay for him to have a moment of weakness. During SAO, he believed that he could do anything and now after SAO, he realizes that he can't do anything. But maybe I'm full of shit. Where do I even begin with the whole Kazuto/Suguha thing?

Before I say anything, let me just say that I hate her romantic feelings for Kazuto. It may be different if they were actually raised as _cousins_ , but they weren't! They were raised as siblings! That makes it weird for me and I just can't see them as a valid pairing! Honestly, the whole thing that happened with that reveal in my version is completely and entirely one hundred percent my fault.

If I ever do a reboot for this story, I'll most likely just retcon Sugu's feelings. That's what I should have done. It was pretty much nonexistent until that chapter. I know what Progressive is, I'm not stupid. Again, sorry that you didn't get the pairing that you preferred. Kirisuna is always going to be the only pairing for me, sorry. Well, most likely anyway.

Oh, you're upset that I changed a character tag? You're upset that I changed one little thing? Grow up. Honestly.

 _Guest (Chapter 2): what's the point of saving Diavel? difference? How can you speak of difference if Diavel rescue doesn't change anything? it's stupid to copy the canon if it isn't to change anything! and why did you change the Sachi tag to Suguha? Sachi a 'main' character? is a joke?_

 _if she really had been a 'main' character, you should have paired her with Kirito! what's the point of saving Sachi if it's for paired Kirito with Asuna? I find it insulting and disrespectful to Sachi and Suguha that you still put Kirito and Asuna together! why didn't you paired Kirito and Sachi together?_

 _there are few Kirito x Sachi fics, it was an opportunity to paired them together but not it's yet Asuna!_ _-_-_ _always Asuna! again and again Asuna! Asuna! Asuna! Asuna! she's a real black hole! you should have let Sachi die if it was to leave her still aside, the story would be the same! sorry but if it is to follow the original canon without REAL changes your story sucks!_

 _Diavel's rescue doesn't change the canon when he was apparently a beta tester? why does it not interfere? the author has probably never played a video game, and neither do you! otherwise you would have known that a beta version is different from the final version! Kibaou's accusation against betatesters is stupid and meaningless._

 _just like the fact that Kirito isolates himself for a trifle! the betatesters helped the noobs but why is it the betatesters' fault if Kayaba changed the game? this event is stupid and should never have existed! lol_

 _your story sucks because you're NOT really trying to change things! Diavel survives but Kirito is STILL forced to play the beaters for ...no reason? Sachi survives but is discarded for the benefit of whom? Asuna? (as in the novel/anime) Suguha has feelings but Kirito but she too is always excluded in favor of Asuna? no real changes, just a simple retelling without real differences, boring and uninteresting._

Oh, so you're upset that you didn't get the pairing that you wanted? Grow up! It's 2019, almost 2020. There are more justifiable things to be upset about and yet, you decide to be upset about two fictional characters not getting together in a fanfiction?! Smh. No disrespect to anyone who ships Sachi and Kirito, but you sir, you take it to the extreme!

Don't tell me that I don't know the difference between a final version and a beta version. Everyone and their mother would know the difference! And also, don't tell me that I'm not trying to change things! There are changes and in fact, more than I can think of! If you think that my story sucks, then what do you want from me?

Honestly! I don't know what to do or what to tell you. The only thing that I can think of is to tell you not to read my story if you think it sucks. That's it. That's all I can say. So, thanks for the review, I guess.

 _Guest (Chapter 25): what is this carnage with suguha? OxO first Sachi now Suguha goes to the pan? and in addition you massacre Suguha's feelings horribly! the quality of this story drops from chapter to chapter, much too fast, it was much better done in the novel it was so badly done that it was cringeworthy! I'm done with this shit! the author respects neither Sachi nor Suguha and treats them like trash! as the author did in the novel!_

Okay, if the quality is dropping with each passing chapter, then why are you still here? If you think the novel did it better, then by all means, go read the novel! You're done with this shit? Fine! Then, leave. Stop reading my story. Sorry that I couldn't give you a pitch perfect story. Good day, sir!

 _Shadow (Guest)(Chapter 3): Sachi (and even Suguha) deserves more love than Kirisuna who is overdone but the auror chooses the most convenient, easiest and least tiring route? why did you spare Sachi's life? Sachi was apparently Kirito's first love! if she dies because of that, i don't find it very respectful to save her and dismiss her again?_

 _this obsession with Asuna is really regrettable. Asuna is yandere, she is not in love but obsessed with Kirito! I love Sachi and I am bitterly disappointed to see that she is dismissed as a ghost and that Asuna is always the eternal chosen! sigh and why save Diavel if Kirito is still forced to become a beater? is it really you calling it 'your take' on Sao?_

 _there is no real divergence in your story, the rescues of Diavel and Sachi have limited impact on the cannon! Could Kirito become more sociable? or Diavel convince him to stay? admitting that he is also a betatesteur cutting the crap of Kibaou? or could you have made Kirito a guild leader? Sachi and Diavel could just as well be dead as history wouldn't change!_

 _a lot of lost opportunities because for a reason that escapes me you stay close to the barrel. by easy solution I think? this story is bad because you don't change the events of the anime, on the contrary you stay stuck! and it's bad, no matter what people say! I have only to imagine that Sachi survived because the author decides to make her live to see again Sao, the author choosing Sachi integrating the harem._

 _yes your story is just a simple variation of what Sao might have been if Sachi had survived. not reals differences or divergence! if that's really not a good story. next story, actually try to diverge please._

No, I'm not taking the easiest route! By letting Sachi live, I have to plan out how scenes are going to go with her being a main character now! And that isn't always easy! I actually have a headache as I write this. Do you even know what yandere means? And as I already said, there are changes in this version! I don't care if you think my story is bad, I really don't. I don't give two shits. Thanks for the review, I guess.

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 26): Definitely a better chapter than the canon version! I really can't wait for the rest of the chapters for this arc! And great surprise with Lisbeth and Diavel!_

Wow, um, thanks, Naruto. It actually surprises me that someone enjoyed these chapters. I really needed this kind of review, after having to read through that hate-fest (again). Thanks for the review, as always.

Next Chapter: Kirito finally meets Sugou, otherwise known as Oberon The Fairy King and he quickly gets the upper hand over Kirito. However, Oberon eventually lets his guard down and Kirito then humiliates the so-called "Fairy King". Asuna is returned to the real world.

 _Author's Note:_

* So, that was the chapter. I know that I don't usually leave the ending author's note here, but I had to this time. I wanted this to be the last thing that the readers see from this chapter. So, here goes nothing.

* It's clear to me that I owe my readers an apology. I understand that I slaughtered Suguha's feelings for Kazuto. That is my fault and I apologize. I shouldn't have even included it. However, the negative reviews have taken their toll. And my self esteem has been lowered quite a bit. I doubt any of my readers actually care. After reading this story, I wouldn't care what's going on with the author, either.

* I can't believe that I was actually proud of this story for a while. I used to see this story as my greatest achievement (at least in writing) and now it's hard for me to look at. It's become my biggest failure. All of the negative reviews are right. This ISN'T a good version of SAO. I should have seen it sooner. Hopefully next time, I'll get it right. That is, if there was going to be a next time.

* This is painful for me to say, so I'll just say it. There isn't going to be an adaptation for SAO Season Two. It won't be happening anymore. And I don't think there's a single reader here who cares. Well, there may be one, and you may know who you are. I've just been torn to bits by negative reviews and I've had it.

* I'm tired of coming up with ideas (I know, it's shocking that I actually call them ideas, right?) and then getting ripped the fuck apart. Sorry, pardon my French. I tend to curse when I'm going on a rant. And that's not what I want this to be. I want this to be a calm explanation of what's happening.

* In all honesty, there is a chance that Season Two could still happen, but I doubt that enough readers care to make it happen. If anyone does care, I'll get into that at a later date. So, I'll get to my final bit. Seeing as there won't be a Season Two, there won't be a reboot, either. For the longest time, I thought that this was a better version of SAO.

* I ACTUALLY thought that I was doing a good job. I mean, I omitted a certain scene that offended me (and most likely, other people). That scene where Asuna is nearly raped by those slugs, I removed that because people debate that that's one of the things that ruined Fairy Dance. I removed it and no one batted an eye, it seems like.

* However, I'll actually be finishing my version of Fairy Dance, I wouldn't leave this on a cliffhanger. But like I said, I thought that I was making a better version of SAO. However, all of these hate reviews have told me that not only is this not a better version, but this is a terrible story.

* This is just a terrible story. I can't believe that I was proud of it at one point. I now feel like that I'm ruining SAO for my readers. And that's the main reason why I'm not adapting Season Two. It's not because of the reviews. It's because why should I ruin SAO more than I already have? I'm done. I'm just done with this.


	28. Chapter 28: Gilded Hero: Part 2

Chapter 28: Gilded Hero: Part Two

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello and welcome to Chapter Twenty Eight. I'm sorry if my explanation at the end of the last chapter took a depressing turn. I just wanted to explain what's going to happen with this story. As I said before, there is a chance for this story to be picked up by me again, however, I'll explain that next chapter, which should be released on New Year's Eve.

* As for this chapter, I had originally planned to release it on Christmas Day, but depending on how I feel and if it's done, I may release this late Christmas Eve. Anyway, that's a quick run down of this chapter and the final chapter.

* I want to apologize if the "fight scene" in The World Tree was lackluster. I am well aware that it was most likely lackluster. I'll admit it, I've never been good with fight scenes. I was a lot worse when I started writing four or five years ago, but I'm not much better now.

* Anyway, enough talk. Let's just get into this. I hope you readers don't hate this chapter.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _ALfheim, Neutral Territory – Arun, The World Tree – The Birdcage – December 13_ _th_ _, 2025_

 _Three Days Remaining_

A awful cackling sound echoed out into the darkness. Asuna and I looked around us, trying to determine where the noise came from. Seconds later, that's when we heard the voice.

"What a surprise. What is a cockroach like yourself doing in my birdcage?"

It felt as though my blood had run cold. Thoughts ran through my head.

 _Could it be? Could that be the voice of the man who caused all of this?_

"I hoped you liked how I decided to make my entrance." The voice said again.

Then, I saw a humanoid form begin to manifest a small distance away from the two of us. It was a man, slightly taller than me, with long, flowing blonde locks, large pale, green wings and wearing a long, green robe. And he also wore a crown of some sort. The image of this man instantly fit the name of someone I had heard quite a bit during my time in ALO.

 _Oberon The Fairy King,_ I thought.

The man took a few steps closer to us.

"It took me months to replicate Emperor Palpatine's laugh from Star Wars." He said. "So, I hope that you appreciate it."

I wrinkled my nose with disgust.

 _Eh, really? Star Wars?_

"Oberon The Fairy King, I presume?" I asked. "Really, Star Wars? An American movie? You have no taste!"

I felt Asuna tug at my arm and so, I turned to look at her.

"Kirito, that's Sugou Nobuyuki, my ex-boyfriend!"

I felt my blood begin to warm with anger. I turned back to Sugou/Oberon, to see him smirking.

"And you must be Kazuto Kirigaya, otherwise known as 'Kirito'."

He stepped right up to me and his smirk disappeared, to be replaced by a frown. He then surprised me by backhanding me. And he did so much harder that I thought he could. I actually fell to the ground. He then took one step closer to me and kicked me in the rib, causing me to roll over onto my stomach. He let out a sigh, sounding like he was satisfied.

"I can't tell you how long I've been waiting to do that to you, Kirito." Sugou replied. "But as much as I wanted to confront you in real life, I had to wait. I had to wait to get you here, so I could humiliate you in-game, just to show you how powerless and helpless you are."

I turned my head to look at him, finding it surprisingly hard to do so.

"Y... You caused the disappearances of former SAO survivors, didn't you?"

He leaned down with another smirk on his face.

"But of course, I did! They were valuable candidates for my experiments!"

I couldn't believe him. How could he do such a thing? He seemed to notice my shocked look and the smirk on his face grew, as if that satisfied him.

"You've been waiting?" I asked.

"Why, yes I have."

"What about that tranquilizer the other night? What was that about?"

"You had him tranquilized?" Asuna gasped with shock. "You... You monster!"

The smirk on Sugou's face disappeared, to be replaced with another frown. He looked up at her.

"Quiet, you." was all he said.

His disrespect to Asuna caused my temper to flare. Sugou looked back down at me, frown still on his face and spoke again.

"I am so sorry that that happened to you. Believe me, I really am. But truth be told, I did order that group of men out to watch you guys that night. That's all that they were supposed to do. But I suppose that they got a little cocky. They thought that I may appreciate having you in front of me in the real world. But no. No, no, no. I wanted to face you in-game."

"Face me in game? Why?"

He smirked yet again. How I longed to wipe that stupid smirk off of his face.

"Why because I wanted to best you in your own realm, of course. I wanted to make you think that you were in control, that you were in the zone. And then, I would crush and humiliate you, making you realize that you really can't do _anything_."

 _Crush and humiliate me? Make me realize that I can't do anything? Fat chance._

A smirk of my own spread across my face.

"I can't wait to wipe that stupid smirk off of your..."

Sugou rolled his eyes.

"Shut up."

And somehow, I listened to him. I turned my head, over the course of several seconds and looked at Asuna. I then turned back to him, once again, over the course of several seconds.

"I'm going to make you pay for treating her this way!"

His smirk disappeared, He bent down and grabbed my hair, pulling my head up and off the floor. I stared into his eyes.

"First of all, what did I tell you about talking? Save your breath, kid. You're going to need it." he said. "Now, you will not talk about my Titania. You will not look at her, you will not talk to her and you won't think about her. If we're clear on that, that'll make all of this easier for both of you."

He then drove my chin against the ground, causing minor pain in my jaw. I looked up at him after a few seconds.

"Tell me, why can't I hardly move?" I asked.

He smile a toothy grin.

"Like it? It's a new skill that I've developed. I call it Gravity Magic and I'll introduce it in the next update!"

I didn't need to say anything regarding that.

"Can I ask you a question?"

He shrugged.

"Sure. I have you right where I want you, so I'm in a good mood. Go for it."

"There was never any 'Grand Quest', was there?"

He chuckled.

"How perceptive of you, Kirigaya. No, there was never any Grand Quest. Silly, stupid, little rumors that I allowed players to spread among the game's populace. I never intended to allow an entire race of players to ascend to be Alfs. And you could also say that ALO isn't in beta."

My eyes widened with shock. He seemed to notice this.

"No, the fact that ALO was in 'beta', that was a cover story, if you will. It was the perfect explanation for the bugginess that some players report, as a result of the experiments on my guinea pigs."

 _He sees them as guinea pigs? Nothing else?_

Sugou began to walk away from me. I turned to watch him walk towards Asuna, who seemed to be frozen in place.

"Now, I've answered your question. If you could just lie there, I'll come back to you."

He continued walking towards Asuna, but he eventually stopped. And he turned back around to face me.

"You know what? I just really want to savor this, you know? I finally have you right where I want you! The moment that I've been dreaming of for months now is finally here! So, I'm going to savor this just a little more, if you don't mind!"

He walked back over to me, stopped and placed his foot on my back. And then he pressed down, not that it really did anything.

"I'm going to let you in on something, Kirigaya. So, bear with me, here. Imagine this: With my research, I'm creating technology that would allow me to do something that many men have only dreamed of. I'll finally have full control over the human soul! I'll be a God! In this world and in the real one!"

I couldn't help but snicker at what he said. I could almost feel him looking down at me.

"What? What's so funny, Kirigaya?"

I turned my head and did my best to look up at him.

"You call yourself a God. Akihiko Kayaba was a God in Aincrad, only in a world that he created. Not you, though. No. You're just a man, a man who's trying his best to play a part that he was never meant to have!"

He just stared down at me with a blank face, before sighing with annoyance.

"Why did you have to go and do that? I was perfectly content with just having you underneath my foot! Oh, well. System command, change the pain absorber from level ten to level seven."

 _Pain absorber? What the hell is he doing?_

He bent down and began to whisper to me.

"I just want you to know that I want this to hurt you, but not too much."

 _What?_

Before I could ask what he was talking about, he let out a yell and it felt as though a headache was forming in the back of my head. He had stomped on the back of my head! He then began laughing as he walked around to look down at me.

"I tell you; I could do that all day!" he said as he laughed.

I looked up at him, as he wiped a tear from his eye. He then heaved a sigh and stopped laughing.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I want to spend some time with the girl I love. The girl that _you_ took away from me!"

He began to walk away as I gritted my teeth in anger.

"Sugou, you bastard! If anyone took her away from anybody, it was you who took her away from _me_!"

He stopped dead in his tracks and just stood there for a few seconds. He then quickly turned around and ran back over to me, then kicked me dead center in my face. After his foot made contact with my face, I felt my brain begin rattling around in my head.

"Agh, God!" I exclaimed.

"That would be me. Now, I would keep my mouth shut if I were you."

He turned back around and walked back over to Asuna. I was forced to just watch as he came to a stop and snap his fingers. Out of nowhere, chains fell from the darkness above and Asuna's arms were lifted against her own will. The chains then hooked to her wrists, leaving her suspended.

"Sugou, leave her alone!"

He didn't respond to what I said. He just snapped his fingers and she was suddenly pulled towards the floor, causing her to make frightened and anguished look.

"Great! That's exactly what I was looking for!" he exclaimed with enthusiasm. "You can't get NPC women to make faces like that!"

 _That pervert._

All I wanted to do was get up, run at him and ram my sword through his back. However, I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything but sit there and watched. He took a couple more steps toward Asuna and grabbed hold of the veil that hung in her face. He then pulled it up, so her face was no longer obscured. He grabbed a lock of her hair, ran his fingers through her hair and took a long sniff.

"Ah, you smell lovely. Figuring out how to replicate the way you smell in real life was a challenge." He let go of her hair. "And don't even get me started on how hard it was to get an analyzer into that room of yours."

 _Room?_

I couldn't take it anymore. I had to do something to get him to direct his attention to me. So, I decided to speak up again.

"Sugou! Don't you look at her, look at me!"

He looked at me over his shoulder as he just stood there. He let out a sigh.

"Of course, all you needed to do was ask nicely! Hold on, I'll be right with you, Kirigaya."

He snapped his fingers and the chains around Asuna's wrists disappeared. As that happened, a small cage, even smaller than the birdcage that she had been in was, fell from the darkness above us. It came to rest behind her, and I could see it clearer now. There was no furniture and there was only room for one or two people in the cage.

He grabbed her by the throat before she could attempt to move and pushed her inside. The cage's door swung shut on its own. He then snapped his fingers again and the cage began to fly upwards. Asuna grabbed the bars of the cage and looked down at us as it came to a stop several feet above us.

"Hold on, my dear! I'll be back with you in a few moments!"

My temper flared once more. I hated that he was being affectionate with her. He then turned back to me and walked back over to me. I took the opportunity that I had been given.

"Sugou, where are you keeping her in the real world? What did you do with her?!"

He just smirked at me as he came to a stop in front of me. He kneeled in front of me.

"Well, seeing as you won't be going anywhere, I suppose that I can tell you. So, here goes. How do you keep your biggest secret from the 'Great Kirito'? I'll tell you. You stick right under his big nose and wait!"

My eyes widened with confusion.

 _What is he talking about?!_

He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him

"You see, Kirigaya, she's at the place where it all began. She's resting where your post-SAO lives began. She's in the hospital where you went through your rehabilitation!"

He started laughing, most likely from the look of shock that was now on my face. He let go of my chin and patted my cheek.

 _How couldn't I have known? Well, why would I have suspected the hospital? How could I have..._

He interrupted my thoughts.

"Kirigaya, I let you ask me a question, so now I have one for you. Why are you here? What were you expecting to happen? _What do you want?!_ "

 _What do I want?_

I chuckled as a few tears rolled down my cheeks.

"What do I want? All I..."

"Wait, hold that thought. System command, change the pain absorber from level seven to level five!"

 _He changed the pain setting again? What's he going to do now?_

"Okay, go ahead."

I let out a sigh.

"All I want for Christmas is to have Asuna back by my side."

He immediately began to laugh. He then surprised me by beginning to sing in a really obnoxious, loud voice.

"On the twelfth day of Christmas, Santa gave to me: Kazuto Kirigaya!"

He quickly moved around to my right side. He then kicked me in the jaw. Fire shot up my jaw. It felt as though it were on fire. If this was real life, it may have been dislocated.

"On a silver platter!"

He continued laughing as he began dancing around in circles around me for ten or fifteen seconds. He finally stopped and let out a sigh.

"Oh, that was fun! But I think I've done all I can with this. I've milked this as much as I can."

He walked back in front of me and grabbed my chin again, which was still throbbing.

"Kirito, I want you to know something. When you die, and you will die, there won't be any resurrections this time."

He then gave he a solemn look.

"I hope that they remember you."

He then let go of me and stood back up.

"Okay, let's get the final part out of the way. System command, change the pain absorber from level five to level three! This is the level where pain will begin to affect your body in the real world. I look forward to hearing you scream, Kirigaya."

He moved over to my right side again and suddenly pulled my sword from my scabbard. A few seconds later, he spoke again.

"Goodbye, Kazuto Kirigaya. I very seriously doubt that we will ever meet again."

He then drove the sword down through my back and out my stomach.

"Kirito!" I heard Asuna yell my name from above.

I didn't scream. Or yell. Or anything. Honestly, I was somewhat shocked from the pain. My entire torso and back felt as though they were on fire. I couldn't move or do anything.

 _Elsewhere_

I had no idea where I was right now. The pain had ceased a little, but I could still feel it. It was definitely still there. I was lying down in some endless expanse of white nothingness.

 _Why is this happening to me? Am I being punished for thinking that I was some sort of hero? For thinking that I was the only one who could save Asuna?_

That's when I heard a familiar voice. The same voice that I had heard earlier today.

 _Are you giving up? Are you giving up?_

 _No,_ I thought. _I'm facing reality, I think._

 _Then you are giving up. What was the point of me lending you a much needed hand, if you were just going to give up?_

 _So, it was you who helped me? Is it really you, Akihiko Kayaba?_

There was silence for a few seconds.

 _Yes and no. You're giving into a system that you once beat!_

I wanted to sigh, but I couldn't.

 _What's the point? He's a GM and I'm just a player._

 _You were in this situation before and you prevailed!_

If I could snort, I would have.

 _That was a long time ago,_ I thought.

I could have sworn I heard footsteps now.

"So, our battle was what then? A one time thing? One night only? A joke, even?"

I suddenly found myself able to look up now, only able to do just that. I couldn't believe it. Akihiko Kayaba was standing over me.

"Do you remember our fight?" he asked. "You showed me that the human mind is superior to the system!"

I just stared up at him.

"You... You can't be... You're..."

He cut me off.

"I will not accept the fact that all I did for you today was all for nothing! Stand up, Kirito! Stand up!"

The world of white melted around me and was soon replaced by the world of darkness that Sugou had put us in. I continued to lay there for a few seconds, trying to catch my breath. After those initial few seconds, I saw my HP bar shoot all the way back up to green. I let out a sigh, as I began to force myself to stand.

 _He wants a fight? Well, let's give him a fight!_

Sugou was standing ahead of me, with his back to me and looking up at Asuna's new cage.

"So, that was your 'boyfriend'?" he asked. "The 'legendary Kirito'? Well, I must say that I am disappointed. I expected him to have just a little more fight in him!"

As I stood up, the sword in my chest came tumbling out.

"Sugou, your attacks are weak! The blades in SAO hit harder. Much harder!"

He finally turned around to look at me. He frowned as he saw me standing there.

"Unbelievable." He replied. "I've got a few bugs left to deal with! Oh, well."

He walked over to me and began to make the motion of backhanding me. I grabbed his wrist before it could hit my face. I lifted my leg up and kicked him away from me, which only sent him a few steps back. My eyes narrowed.

"You're insane." I said.

"No, insane would be letting her go again!" he exclaimed as he pointed back at her cage. "And I don't plan on doing that again!"

I gritted my teeth.

"Asuna was never going to be yours. When I get out of here, I'll do everything in my power to make sure you are sent far away from her for the rest of your life!"

He rolled his eyes. Before he could speak, I spoke myself.

"System login: ID Heathcliff!"

As soon as I said that, a whole new menu appeared before my eyes.

"What?! Whose ID are you using?!"

I ignored him.

"System command: enable administrator privileges. Set ID Oberon to level one."

A faint yellow outline flashed around Sugou, followed by an error message that popped up in front of his view.

"An ID that outranks mine! That's impossible! This is my world and I am the creator!"

As he spoke, the circle of gravity magic below us slowly disappeared. I finally felt normal again.

"I'm it's ruler! It's king! It's God!"

"No, I don't think so." I replied. "System command: change the pain absorber from level ten to level five."

I was going to start off easy with him. Part of me _wanted_ to enjoy this. He turned to look at me with a glare.

"Okay, let's get this over with."

He walked over to me and tried to backhand me again, but I nailed him in the chin with an uppercut before he could land his strike. He hobbled backwards, wailing with pain as he did. I couldn't help but grin.

"Just so you know, that's only a taste of what's to come. I hope you're ready, Sugou."

He eventually got over his pain and removed his hand from his jaw. He looked at me with anger.

"You little punk... How dare you talk to me like that?!"

He ran at me and I got ready to attack. One second passed and I threw my fist towards his face. I nailed him in the middle of the face and heard the oh-so-satisfying sound of his nose popping. He let out a cry of pain as he hobbled backwards once again. I could just see the image of virtual blood flowing from his nose, even though there was no such thing in SAO and ALO. He held his nose as he looked at me, tears streaming down his face.

"I... I think you broke my nose!" he wailed.

I snickered.

"Aw, has wittle baby Sugou lost his ego? You won't feel any real world pain unless the pain absorber is set to three or below. You said it yourself, remember?"

He looked back at me with angry eyes. Before he could say anything, I intervened.

"Oh, speaking of which, system command: change the pain absorber from level five to level zero!"

Sugou suddenly looked back at me with fear.

"L... L... Level zero? Y... You're crazy!"

I chuckled.

"Sugou, you deserve everything that's about to happen to you."

He looked back at me, still with fear and now uncertainty. I cleared my throat after I scanned the menu for a few seconds.

"System command: generate object, ID Excalibur."

A golden sword materialized out of thin air and dropped into my hands.

"Huh, who know? All it takes is a command to summon a legendary weapon?"

He looked back at me with pleading eyes.

"Please, no. Not the Holy Sword Excalibur!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Please, Sugou. I'm not going to kill you. At least, not with this."

He looked back at me, once again with fear.

"What? What do you mean?"

I tossed the sword at him and he took his hands from his face to catch it. I got a glimpse at his nose at last and I saw that it was horribly crooked after I had punched him. Good. I was glad. The tip of the Holy Sword Excalibur touched the floor and it looked as though he were struggling to lift it.

"Come on, Sugou. I want this to be a fair fight. I won't kill an unarmed player."

He glared back at me again. I couldn't wait to wipe that glare from his face. I reached down and picked up my own sword and held it out in front of me. I looked back at Sugou, to see that the tip of his sword was still on the floor.

"Come on, Sugou. Raise your sword!"

I could have sworn that I saw him flinch.

"Don't act like a wimp, Sugou. The other guy never ran, no matter what happened. Akihiko Kayaba never ran!"

Sugou actually flinched as a frown appeared on his face.

"Oh my God! Kayaba?! That's the ID you're using, isn't it? Isn't it?!"

I let out a sigh.

"That man took everything I had! He took everything that was rightfully mine! All of that fame should have been mine!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Sugou, I won't lie and say that I don't know where you're coming from. I lost to him and then had to work for him. But this isn't about him. This is about you and me. So? Raise your sword."

He was silent, but he finally did just that. He ran forward and tried to strike. I parried his strike. He tried again. And so, I parried his strike, again.

"Die!" he exclaimed. "Die! Die!"

He threw four strikes in my direction and I blocked them all with ease.

"Have you even used a sword before?" I taunted him.

I sensed his anger flare. He ran forward again and tried to strike. I let out a sigh. I then blocked his strike and proceeded to cut off one of his hands. He screamed with pain, which was music to my ears. He dropped his sword and looked at his stump, as he reached for it and held it. I shook my head and gestured towards the sword on the floor.

"No, no. Come on. Again."

Even though I thought that he would refuse, he actually crouched down and grabbed the sword by its hilt.

"It does hurt though, right? But I promise that it's nothing. Not compared to what you've put Asuna through."

I saw him flinch again. He grimaced as he ran towards me and tried to strike me. I blocked his strike. He tried again and I blocked again. I had had enough of watching him struggle. I was ready to end this. I stepped forward and sent a cut across his waist. His legs were gone. They disappeared in a white light. And he was screaming in pain.

I let out a sigh as I walked over to him, now lying on his stomach, trying to climb away. I reached him and bent down to grab him by his hair. I finally lifted him up and looked at his face. There were tears flowing from his eyes and snot flowing from his nose. He looked scared. And he was right to be scared.

"Sugou, I have something to say. Once you're gone, I want you to crawl back under that damn rock that you came from. And never, ever come back out."

He looked even more scared now. He sniffled.

"Goodbye, Sugou Nobuyuki. I doubt that I'll see you again."

I then cast the remaining half of him up into the air and once he was low enough, I thrust my sword up and into his face. That face of his was gone now. The rest of him disappeared after that. I let out a sigh, as I returned my sword to its scabbard. I then stepped forward and snapped my fingers. Asuna's cage then began to lower itself. Once it was on the ground, the door opened, and I helped her out. Once she was out of the cage and it had disappeared, she hugged me.

"I'm sorry if I scared you." I whispered to her. "I just had to do that."

She pulled away from the hug, still holding my hands and shook her head.

"Mm-mm." she grunted. "I don't blame you. In fact, I'm glad you did what you did! Sugou deserved everything that happened to him."

I let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm glad you agree."

We continued looking at each other for a few seconds and I spoke again.

"Okay, I hate to cut our reunion short, but we need to get you out of here. We need to get you home. And I promise that I'll do everything in my power to keep this from happening again."

"Of course, you will." She said with a happy smile on her face. "I have faith in you. Always have, always will. And you will always be my hero."

I closed my eyes and chuckled. I opened my eyes a second later and opened the administrator menu again. I began scrolling and did so until I came to the button that would do the job. I looked back at Asuna.

"Are you ready?"

She nodded. I was about to press the button when she spoke up.

"Wait!"

I turned back to look at her.

"I want you to be the first person that I see when I get back."

I felt my cheeks heat up a bit, but I smiled.

"Well, the _first person_ may be difficult to pull off, but I can promise you that I'll be one of the first."

She smiled back.

"I can live with that."

I nodded, pressed the button and confirmed. I watched as Asuna slowly began to glow and dissolve into hundreds of pixels. I let out a sigh and looked up.

"You can come out now. I know you're there. It is you, isn't it, Akihiko Kayaba?"

Eventually, a man in slacks and a lab coat appeared above me and slowly began to hover down to me.

"Yes. It's good to see you again, Kirito."

"Answer my question. Somehow, you're alive, aren't you?"

"Not exactly."

"Not exactly? What do you mean?"

"I am really an afterimage of the Akihiko Kayaba's mind. An echo, if you will."

I rolled my eyes.

"As usual, I have no idea what you're talking about. Well, I suppose I should thank you. It was you who made me able to duel wield, isn't it?"

"Yes. Yes, it was."

"So, I'll always be able to duel wield?"

To my disappointment, he shook his head.

"No. As far as I can tell, there is no duel wielding skill in ALfheim Online. And as for an afterimage and due to the influence I have on this world, I have a very limited lifespan. I won't be here forever and I'm fading fast even now."

"So, this was a one-time thing?"

He nodded.

"Quite so. In fact, this may be the very last time that we speak."

"How are you here now?"

"Before SAO ended, I saved a copy of my neural mapping to your NerveGear, in hopes that I could be of some help in the future."

I cocked my eyebrow.

"That's very... benevolent, of you."

He shrugged.

"You said you've helped me. What else have you done?"

He chuckled.

"Well, you received an item of apparel at the start of all this, didn't you?"

I looked at him with shock.

"The Coat of Midnight. That was you!"

He nodded.

"You wore it quite often in SAO. I thought that you might have liked having it back."

I shrugged.

"It's cool. What else have you done?"

"I allowed you to duel wield in The World Tree and brought you back from the dead after Sugou killed you."

"And you said you're fading fast now?"

He nodded.

"So, hopefully you'll let me talk now."

I nodded. Suddenly, I saw a golden light above us. I gasped with surprise as I looked up. There was a oval-shaped object floating down to us.

 _No,_ I realized as it got closer. _It's a decently-sized egg._

It lowered into my hands and stopped moving.

"What's this?" I asked.

"The start of a brand new world. A seed that will grow. If you choose to allow it, at least."

I looked at him with confusion.

"Could you not talk in riddles?"

He chuckled.

"I call it 'The Seed'. If you let it sprout, you'll know what I mean. What you do with it is up to you. You can even delete it if you want. However, if you still have any positive feelings whatsoever for the virtual world, you'll plant it and let it sprout."

I looked down at it with curiosity.

"I should be going now. Farewell Kazuto Kirigaya. This will likely be the last time we speak."

I looked up to see him begin to float upwards.

"Wait!" I called. "I got a picture in the mail today that was taken in Aincrad! Would that mean anything to you?"

He came to a stop.

"So, they finally delivered it for me?"

A quizzical look appeared on my face as I cocked my head to look at him.

"What are you talking about?"

He hovered back down to the ground.

"One of my former associates was supposed to deliver that picture, that was taken at the very end of SAO, months ago."

"How does it exist? It shouldn't be able to exist!"

"It was taken with a special recording crystal."

 _So, my hunch was correct._

"And I left detailed instructions to my associate on how to convert it to a digital file and how to manifest it into a physical form. To print it off as a real photo."

I just stared at him.

"And then I requested that it get mailed to you. I thought you would want a reminder of that moment at the very end. I hope that I gave you a lasting memory with that."

I continued staring and eventually nodded.

"That is very thoughtful of you. Thank you."

He nodded.

"No need to thank me. Now, I must go. I hope that we may one day meet again Kirito. Farewell."

He then began to glow, and I averted my eyes. Eventually, there was a bright flash and even with my eyes averted, they hurt for a second. When I looked back to where he had been standing, not only did I see that he was gone, but I found myself standing in an empty birdcage. I was back in ALfheim. I sighed.

"Yui, are you there? Are you okay?"

"Daddy!"

I looked up, saw a flash of light and Yui fell from it, hugging herself against me.

"Is Mommy okay?!"

I nodded with a smile.

"Yes, Asuna's safe. She's back in the real world now."

"Oh, thank goodness!" she exclaimed as she rubbed her head against my chest.

I sighed with relief.

"You had me worried, Yui."

She looked back up to me.

"Don't worry. I took shelter in the memory storage on your NerveGear."

I chuckled.

"That was pretty clever of you. Don't worry, I'll find a better home for you soon. Something with more memory space."

A sad smile came to my face now.

"Listen, I promise that we'll visit you soon. I just have to see Asuna again in the real world. However, I don't know how much longer this world will be here."

She beamed a smile at me.

"Not to worry Daddy! No matter what world we go it, I'll always be residing in your NerveGear!"

I chuckled again.

"That's good to know. Anyway Yui, I have to go now."

"Okay, Daddy. I love you!"

"I love you, too."

I opened my menu, kissed Yui on the cheek, took one last look at the world outside the birdcage and then left ALfheim.

 _Kazuto's House_

When I came to, the first thing I saw was Sugu standing over me. She let out a gasp of shock and fell backwards onto my bed.

"I'm sorry! When you didn't log out right away, I got worried!" she explained. "And when you began breathing heavily, I thought that something was wrong!"

I sighed as I took off the NerveGear and sat it down on the bed next to me.

"Something was wrong. That was probably when I died."

Her eyes widened.

"You died?! Then, is Asuna still trapped?! Don't tell me that you gave up..."

I shook my head and held up my hand.

"No, she is free. I died when I faced Oberon, who is actually her ex from the real world. But I was brought back to life."

She went white with shock.

"Oberon is actually Sugou Nobuyuki? The developer of ALO?"

I nodded.

"Yes."

"How did you come back if you died?"

"It's a long story."

"That's okay. You don't have to explain right now."

"Sugu, listen. Thank you so much for your help. I couldn't have done it without everything you did for me. So, are we good now?"

She put up her hand.

"We'll talk about that later. Right now, you have to find Asuna. She's probably wondering where you are by now."

I looked at my digital clock. She was right. It was just past nine now. I had to get moving.

"Sugu, Sugou told me that he's keeping her at the hospital where our rehab took place. I have to go. But you have everyone's numbers. Let them know where she is and that I'm headed there now."

She nodded with a smile.

"Right!"

 _Sometime Later_

I walked my bicycle down the driveway as Sugu walked by my side. I had my jacket on and had my keys and everything. I looked at Sugu.

"Okay, here I go."

"Tell her I said hi, okay?"

I nodded.

"Definitely. She'll be glad to know that you're thinking of her."

I stopped and began to rub my hands together.

"Wow, it's cold."

I looked up at the sky, to see white, petal-looking objects falling from the sky.

"It's snowing!"

Believe it or not, it was actually our first snowfall this year. I finally got onto my bike.

"Be careful!" she called to me.

I waved to her and finally began to peddle away. As I peddled, I never looked back, having no idea that I was about to walk into a world of trouble.

 _Author's Note:_

* And that's it for this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed. So, I have a few things I want to say. Nothing about the final chapter or any of that jazz. That chapter will come New Year's Eve, as I said, while this one was released late Christmas Eve or early, early Christmas Day. Depending on how you look at it.

* So, what did you think of Sugou in this version? I wanted to paint him as very disconnected from reality and even crazier than the canon version, somewhat even like the Joker in a way. Tell what you think of this version of Sugou/Oberon.

* I obviously removed another bit from this episode, you should know what I'm referring to. I think the last thing I'll say is what did you think of Kayaba? And by that, I mean his explanation on how he's been helping Kirito, like he made him able to duel wield for a time. I hope you guys like the explanation of the picture Kirito got in the first part of this arc as well, even though it's a small detail.

* Well anyway, Merry Christmas guys and thanks for reading this one. I'm going to go though, so have a fantastic holiday and bye.

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 27): I actually do care about you as an author (even though I myself am not an author). You ARE doing a good job, and you should be proud of it. I think it is an amazing story, and it is definitely a better version of SAO. You have NOT ruined SAO._

 _Don't let all of the negative reviews get to you. A lot of people leaving negative reviews are just trolls and or readers that are unhappy because of how things in the story weren't developing the way that they wanted._

 _I have been a huge SAO fan, so I know what I am talking about. It is my #1 favorite anime/manga/light novel (which used to be the Naruto series until they ruined it by making Boruto)._

 _I think that the reasons why this story keeps getting negative reviews are because not enough people have read it thoroughly and entirely, and that most of the reviewers are just trolls or salty people._

 _Like I said before, don't let the negative reviews affect your writing or your thoughts. Just do what YOU want to do, and how YOU want to do it. Even if you don't get any more new positive reviews from readers, just know that I will always be there to support you._

Well, thanks, Naruto. I believe what you say that you know what you're talking about. I don't think you're lying at all. I appreciate your words, but I'm most likely quitting this story. However, I will get into the chance of this thing being picked up again next chapter. If I ever can be proud of this story again, it'll take some time. I've never gotten into Naruto. It just doesn't seem to be my style.

SAO was my favorite anime; Aincrad is definitely one of if not my favorite anime intros. In the past months, SAO and Your Lie in April have tied for my favorite anime. Even though it's really sad, I love Your Lie in April to death. It truly changed my life. I plan on collecting the manga at some point. Thanks for the review as always and Merry Christmas!

 _Guest (Chapter 27): No! For F's sake don't say that! This story is incredible, and I love every part of it, darn it! Being negative about things aren't gonna fix anything! Please keep up the writing, I beg of you. Someone might have their own idea on how the story should be written, but this is YOUR story. YOU decide what happens, no one else. And if you eventually decide to write Part II, count on me being one of the first people to read and rewiew. I love this story, and I really like the way it turned out!_

Thanks for the kind words. I suppose not all guest reviewers are negative. You've proven that to me today. I really am glad that you enjoyed every part of this story, as you say, even though for me, it's hard to positively look at this story anymore. And as I told Naruto, I will get into how this story may be picked up again next chapter. Thanks for the review as always and Merry Christmas!

Next Chapter: In the series finale, Kazuto can finally see Asuna in the real world, however before he can see her, he's confronted by Sugou Nobuyuki, who in real life is a pathetic comparison to his in-game persona of Oberon The Fairy King. Will Kazuto be able to see his beloved again?


	29. Chapter 29: The World Seed

Chapter 29: The World Seed

 _ **I Don't Own Sword Art Online/**_ _ **ソードアート・オンライン**_ __ _ **or Any of Characters, All Rights Go To Reki Kawahara and ASCII Media Works**_

 _Author's Note:_

* Hello, and welcome to the final chapter. Well, for now, it's the final chapter, anyway.

* I can't really think of anything that I can say, so I suppose we should just get right into the chapter.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _Tokyo Hospital – December 13_ _th_ _, 2025_

The image of Asuna finally being awake again kept me going all the way to the hospital. It felt weird to be here. Just a little over a hear ago, we had been here, during our rehab. Why would Sugou choose this place to hide Asuna? I had abandoned my bike at the gate, which was unattended and ran for the main entrance to the hospital. I kept running, until a white van came into sight. A man stepped out from behind the van and I ran around him, feeling a sharp sting of pain in my upper arm as I did so.

"You shouldn't have come here." A hoarse voice spoke out.

I came to a stop, as I felt something running down my arm. I slowly turned to look at the man, who was shrouded by shadows and hadn't stepped into the light that the streetlight gave off. As he was still in the shadows, I inspected my arm to see that my sleeve had been cut.

 _Drip, drip._

Something had fallen onto the ground and had made a wet sound upon impacting the pavement. I brought my hand to my face and saw the red running over the back of my hand. Blood.

 _He had cut me!_ _What had I done for him to do this?_

"You shouldn't have come here, Kazuto Kirigaya."

I looked up at the shadowy figure with shock.

 _How did he...?_

"How do you know my name?!"

"And you shouldn't have taken my Titania from me." He spoke, disregarding my question.

 _Titania?! That's the name that Sugou had called Asuna! Wasn't it?_

"Sugou?!" I blurted out.

He let out a weak chuckle, before emerging into the light. The first thing I saw was the shine of the knife that he had in his hand. But the thing I saw next was disturbing. Sugou looked terrible. He looked severely underweight, his hair was an absolute mess and was dirty, his eyes were blood shot, his skin was pale, and he had the worst case of five o'clock shadow I had ever seen. I nearly gasped with shock as I saw him.

"Sugou? What happened to you?!"

He chuckled and began to cough a bit before speaking.

"This is what happens when you spend nearly twenty four hours a day inside the virtual world."

 _Nearly twenty four hours a day? If he was like this now, then this must have been going on for a while._

"Why do this to yourself?"

I couldn't believe that I was actually somewhat concerned for Sugou Nobuyuki, but here I was.

"I was onto something. There was so much researching and testing that I had to do, that I couldn't afford to spend time in the real world. And after what you did to me, don't pretend that you care."

He was right. I didn't care. I was just a pretender. A monster like Sugou Nobuyuki deserved to be locked away for the rest of his natural life. I couldn't even think of what to say now.

"You shouldn't have come here." He repeated.

I couldn't believe that this malnourished man was threatening me.

"Because of you, my Titania is awake. For the moment. And I can't have you seeing her before I put her back to sleep."

"Her name is _Asuna_." I replied through gritted teeth.

"I'll call her whatever the hell I want!"

"I'm not going to allow you to keep me from her. So, I'm going to walk past you now."

"No, you aren't. You've done a very terrible thing, Kazuto. And I have to make sure that you pay for it."

"It's over. Stand down and turn yourself in for your crimes. Make it easy for yourself."

"I can still feel everything you did to me."

He disregarded what I said.

"Turn yourself in, Sugou! You're finished!"

He scoffed.

"Hardly. There are still lots of companies who would kill to have me and my research. And once it's complete, there won't be anything or anyone to stand in my way. Then I'll be the God of this world!"

I rolled my eyes.

"There you go again, with believing that you're a phony baloney God!"

"But before all that, I'm going to kill you, Kazuto!"

I honestly couldn't believe that he was threatening me, I didn't think he even had the strength to. However, he attacked anyway, rushing towards me with his knife ready. I effortlessly dodged him as he ran past and struggled to avoid falling over. I turned back to look at him.

"Stop! Sugou, you need to sit down before you fall down!"

He just laughed like the insane man that he was, disregarding what I had said to him and charged again. That was the only warning he would get. Now I had to force him to stand down.

"You think that you can mess up my plans? Well, you can't! The punishment is death and I won't accept anything else!"

He swung the knife towards me but missed entirely. He stared down at the blade with surprise.

"Damn, my right eye is still fogged up." he muttered. "No matter, this time I won't miss!"

 _There isn't going to be a "this time",_ I thought.

I ran forward and he tried to counterattack, but I didn't give him enough time. I punched him in the face and followed up by punching him in the stomach. That was all it took for him to fall over, dropping the knife as he did. I picked it up and set it up on top of the van, out of his reach.

"Come on, get up." I said.

He grunted as he slowly forced himself to get back up, using the van for support.

"I have no real power in this world, Sugou." I whispered. "But that just means that you don't, either."

He tried to lunge at me without warning and I kicked him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and sending him back first into the van.

"Why couldn't you have just turned yourself in, Sugou?" I asked. "I could have run to get you help from the hospital! You need help! You and I both know it! You hardly look like you can stand! You're crazy and you need help!"

He laughed in a hoarse tone, as he slowly got up again.

"No, I'm not crazy. I'm in love! And you tried to take her from me! She belongs to me!"

I felt a surge of anger rush through me and I then sent a swift, hard kick to his groin. He collapsed onto the ground, struggling to catch his breath.

"She was never rightly yours in the first place, Sugou. She never belonged to you." I said. "I won't say that she belongs to me, but I will say this. She belongs _with_ me, a guy who will care for her in sickness and in health. Don't get back up. Someone will find you sooner or later."

I let out a sigh as I began to walk away from Sugou's defeated form. I clutched my arm as I walked. It felt like it was on fire and it hadn't stopped bleeding. I eventually walked to the entrance and entered the building. The lights in the main floor were mostly off, except for a few that were still on above the help desk, which was manned by a young woman. She got up from her seat as she saw me approach.

"Sir?" she asked.

"I'm here to see Asuna Yuuki." I said in a tired tone.

She stared back at me with a confused expression.

"Sir, we don't have a patient by that name."

"Save it. Don't lie to me. I know she's here. Sugou Nobuyuki told me himself."

"I don't know who you're talking..."

I put up my hand and she stopped talking.

"Look, I am exhausted and annoyed. I _know_ that she's here!"

I clutched my arm as another wave of pain rushed through it. She caught notice of this, and her eyes went wide with alarm.

"You're bleeding!" she exclaimed. "I have to get you in to see a doctor!"

I lifted my hand again.

"No, no doctor. I need to know where she is, damn it!"

"Please, you could need stitches! I need to get you to a doctor!"

I heaved a sigh.

"Fine, let's make a deal, then. You answer my questions, and I'll accept medical attention. If you don't, I walk out of here right this second!"

She must have been desperate, because that's when she broke down.

"Okay, yes! We have a patient by the name of Asuna Yuuki! She's here and so many others are, too!"

"There are others? How many?!"

"Several dozen."

"Several dozen? How is that possible?!"

"Sugou Nobuyuki needed a place with enough space and equipment for his experiments. We would have turned him away because of his unethical ideas, what he bribed us with a large amount of money. Our higher ups couldn't say no."

"Really?! Money is all it took for you to turn a blind eye on that monster's experiments?!"

She looked scared.

"Well, you know what they say: 'Money makes the world go round'?"

I knew that I must have been scaring her.

"Look, I don't mean to frighten you. It's just the fact that that man, that _monster_ , he's kept me from someone I consider near and dear to my heart. I have to see her again. I can tell you myself that Sugou's 'game' is over. When you're through with me, send someone outside. They'll find him collapsed against a white van. While you're at it, call the police and tell them everything he's done!"

She nodded.

"Yes. Are those all of your questions?"

"That I can think of at the moment. Well, you've done your part. Now it's time for me to deliver on my side of the deal. You can take me to a doctor, now."

"Right. Follow me, please!"

She led me through the vacant halls of the hospital after leaving the help desk.

"What's your name?" she asked as she began writing on her clipboard.

"Kazuto." I said. "Kazuto Kirigaya."

She looked at me with surprise.

"Kazuto Kirigaya? You mean you're the legendary Kirito?"

I couldn't help but cringe after hearing someone I'd just met say that name.

"Yes, I'm Kirito. How did you know that?"

"Sugou told us all about you, about the things that you had done. I don't understand VRMMOs, but I must say that it was quite cool to hear."

I couldn't help but blush a little.

"I, um, thanks. You confirmed that Asuna was here. Where is she?"

"Sugou reserved the entire top floor for his use only. His guards are all up there, along with his 'patients'. No one goes in or out with his or his guards' say so."

"And she's up there?"

She nodded.

"Mmm-hmm. He seemed quite confident, in fact."

"Confident? What do you mean?"

"Tonight, he sent all of his guards home. He didn't allow any of them to stay behind."

"Why would he do that?"

"I believe that's because he knew that you'd find out she was here tonight. He knew that he'd face you tonight. He believed that he would remove you from the equation tonight."

I was silent for a second.

"You're right."

"I am?"

"He _was_ too confident."

 _Sometime Later_

I had gotten the cut on my arm stitched up and bandaged. My jacket and shirt had been confiscated for evidence in the inevitable investigation on Sugou's attack against me. And I was finally on my way up to see Asuna. I had gotten up to the top floor and looked for the room that the lady had told me about. I had finally come to the door and I let out a nervous sigh.

I put my hand on the door handle, twisted and pushed the door open. I slowly walked into the room and saw a curtain blocking my view of the bed. I took another deep breath and slowly pulled the curtain back. There she was, staring right at where I was standing. It was the same astonishing face. The same beautiful, flowing brown hair, the same amazing brown eyes. She smiled at me.

"Hi." She said at last.

I smiled back as I took another few steps forward.

"Hi." I replied.

I finally found myself beside her bed. She took my hand, beckoning me to sit down. And so, I did. The longer I stared into those stunning eyes of hers, the more I wanted to give in and break down. And eventually I did. Tears began to run down my cheeks.

"I'm sorry." I croaked out, giving no attempt to fight the tears.

She gave me a concerned look.

"Kirito, you already apologized!" she said. "And when you had nothing to apologize for!"

I shook my head.

"No, that's not what I'm talking about."

She nodded for me to go on.

"In the time after you disappeared, I realized how miserable my life is without you. I realized that I can't live without you."

She looked at me with surprise and I looked back at her, wiping my tears away so I could see her clearly.

"I'm sorry that I didn't say it earlier." I whispered.

She now looked at me with confusion.

"Sorry that you didn't say what, Kirito?"

"Asuna Yuuki, I love you."

She stared back at me with surprise, as a light pink blush appeared on her cheeks. Eventually, she smiled at me.

"I love you too, Kirito."

She leaned in and pressed her lips against mine and I welcomed that what I thought I'd never feel again. She took one of my hands and after a few seconds, pulled away and hugged me. I hugged her close to me, hoping that this would never end.

"Kirito, I want to always be with you." she whispered.

The way she said that tugged at my heartstrings. I hugged her tighter.

"I'll give you everything I have." I whispered back to her.

As I sat there with Asuna resting her head against my chest, I suddenly heard cheering, accompanied by a wolf whistle. We both jumped with surprise and turned to look at the door that I had left open. Standing in the doorway, was Klein (who must have been the one wolf whistling), Lisbeth, Sachi and Agil. There was also the one blue haired guy, who I now knew was Diavel. I felt my face grow warm.

 _How long had they been standing there?_

I didn't get to say anything as Klein approached, followed by the rest of our friends. He came to a stop next to me and clapped me on the shoulder.

"Well, you did it, Kiri-Dude!" he exclaimed. "Never doubted you for a second!"

I felt my face grow even warmer.

"Oh, uh, thanks, man." I said, finding my voice. "But honestly, I couldn't have done it without you guys."

Asuna finally spoke up as well.

"I take it that you pushed Kirito to keep going after I disappeared?"

"Oh, you know it! There was no way in hell that I was going to let him give up on you!"

"Well, thank you. I really appreciate that you kept him going!"

Lisbeth and Sachi approached now, however, before anyone could speak, someone cleared their throat. We turned to look at the doorway. Standing behind Agil and Diavel, was Asuna's father.

 _How could I have forgotten to contact him? Did Sugu get into touch with him? If she did, I owe her a thank you._

"Kirigaya, Could I speak with you out in the hall, please?" he asked.

I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I was nervous. I didn't want to talk to him. I could almost hear him demanding for me to leave Asuna alone. I eventually found myself nodding and I put my hand on top of Asuna's.

"I'll be right back." I whispered to her.

She nodded back at me and I got up. I walked away from the bed, past my friends and followed Mr. Yuuki out the door. He closed the door behind us, and I walked a small distance down the hall before I came to a stop. I finally turned to look at him.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Yuuki." I replied in a shaky, nervous tone. "I just had to see her again. After this, if you want me to leave Asuna alone, I'll understand."

He surprised me by putting up his hand.

"Kirigaya, I believe that I owe you a full apology." He said at last.

I could feel my eyes go wide with surprise.

"What?" I asked.

"I suspected you of being involved with my Asuna's disappearance, when I had no right of doing such a thing."

I was even more surprised now.

"What? Of course, you had the right to suspect me! I was her boyfriend! People always look to the boyfriend first when a girl disappears!"

He put up his hand again.

"Please let me speak. I didn't even stop to consider that her unstable ex, Sugou Nobuyuki, was behind her disappearance. Instead, I looked to _you_. And I shouldn't have. So, I apologize."

I shook my head.

"I can't accept the fact that you're apologizing. If anything, I should be apologizing to _you_. I know that you want me to leave her alone from now on. And I plan on it."

He sighed.

"Actually Kazuto, I want quite the opposite."

Hearing him use my first name surprised me.

"What?" I asked again.

"Her disappearance wasn't your problem. And yet, you were the one who found her in that VR world and uncovered where she was being kept here in the real world. I can't thank you enough."

"Um, you're welcome?"

"I don't want you to leave her alone. I want you to stay with her. Through your actions, you've proven to me that you're the right boy for her. I never gave you my blessing before beginning to date her, but you have it now."

"Um, thanks."

"And when she's able to come back home, I would be quite honored if you would join us for dinner sometime."

I felt my face begin to heat up again.

"Then, I will have to take you up on that."

He then shed a rare smile, reached out and patted my shoulder.

"Let's not keep her waiting. Let's get back, shall we?"

"Okay."

And so, we began walking back to Asuna's hospital room. As soon as we entered again, Asuna immediately noticed and looked up at me with uncertainty. Mr. Yuuki came to a stop while I returned to her bedside and sat back down next to her.

"Is everything okay with you and my father now?" she asked.

I nodded.

"I think so."

She smiled at me.

"Good. I'm glad."

That's when her smile disappeared, and I felt her hand on my bandaged arm.

"Kirito, what happened to your arm?"

I let out a sigh.

 _I guess everyone was too busy being happy with Asuna being back, that no one cared to say something about my arm._

"It's okay, it's nothing serious. I just ran into Sugou outside in the parking lot."

She looked concerned.

"You ran into him?"

I started to nervously scratched at my cheek.

"Um, he may have cut me."

Her eyes widened. Before she could speak, I beat her to it.

"No, it's okay! I had a doctor stitch and bandage it! I'm fine!"

She let out a sigh of relief.

"Okay, if you say so." She spoke before looking at me with a serious look. "What was he like?"

"He looked horrible. Severely underweight. He looked like he needs help."

Klein cleared his throat.

"And you're showing him sympathy?"

I turned to look at him and shook my head.

"An hour ago, I would have. But that was only because of how surprised I was by his appearance. But I can now say that he deserves no sympathy. Not after what he did."

He nodded and grunted in agreement.

"Now, can we please change the subject?" I asked. "I don't want to hear his name again."

 _Sometime Later_

Everyone had departed. Now it was just me, Asuna and her father. Unfortunately, I was going to have to leave soon as well. I patted the top of her hand.

"I should probably let you get some sleep. I'll be back in the morning to see you, okay?"

I was about to get up, when she suddenly grabbed my hand. I looked back at her to see a pleading look in her eyes.

"Stay with me tonight. Please?"

I stared back at her, before looking to her father. He gave me a short nod. I then looked back at her.

"Um, I'll still have to go home. I want to check on Sugu and pack a small bag. Speaking of Sugu, she wanted me to tell you that she said hi."

She looked back at me and eventually nodded.

"Well, I'm glad that she's thinking of me. Just don't take too long, okay?"

I nodded.

"I'll be back before you know it."

She nodded again.

"Okay."

I got up now and moved towards the door. Mr. Yuuki got up as I walked.

"I'll run you home, Kazuto. It's getting late and you don't need to be taking too long."

"I appreciate the offer, but I left my bike at the gate. I should grab it."

Mr. Yuuki moved past me with a bag in his hand.

"You can ask someone to go get it for you or we can have staff hold it somewhere for the night. Either way, I insist."

I let out a sigh. I suppose that he wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Alright, you got me."

He dropped the bag next to her bed.

"Here's a bag full of goodies from home. I don't want my daughter wearing one of those itchy and uncomfortable hospital gowns all night."

"Thanks, Daddy."

"No problem." He said before he kissed her forehead. "Come on, Kazuto. We're wasting time."

I gave Asuna one last wave and then followed Mr. Yuuki out of the room.

 _Sometime Later_

I had returned to the hospital after getting home to check in on Sugu and pack a small bag. Mr. Yuuki opted to just drop me off, instead of coming up with me to see Asuna again. I stood in front of her door and was considering knocking, but I didn't see the point, as she knew that I was coming back. I just opened the door and walked in, shutting it behind me again. As soon as I walked in, Asuna came running, now wearing sweatpants, a long sleeved shirt and socks.

"You're back!" she exclaimed as she continued to run to me.

As she got closer to me, she began to slip and fall. I quickly stepped forward and caught her. I had forgotten to mention that she'd be staying in the hospital for a while. After being in a coma for a couple weeks, her motor skills may have slightly decayed and the doctors thought that she may need rehabilitation.

"Of course, I am! You knew that I was coming back!"

She hugged me tight, refusing to get up from our spot on the floor.

"I know, it's just... I don't know. Part of me can't believe that this is real."

I chuckled.

"Well, believe it. We're really here."

 _Half An Hour Later_

Sometime passed and we eventually turned in for the night. We were snuggled up against each other in the hospital bed. Asuna lay on top of me, with her head resting underneath my chin as I gently rubbed her back. We laid like that for what seemed like hours, before she let out a yawn.

"Good night, Kirito." she whispered to me.

I gently kissed the top of her head.

"Good night, Asuna."

After that, we fell asleep holding each other.

 _Suguha/Leafa_

 _A Few Days Later_

I had stuff to take care of on campus a few days later. I hadn't assumed that I would run into Nagata, however. I was about to leave campus when it happened.

"Hey, Kirigaya!" a male voice called out. "Wait up!"

"Huh?" I grunted as I turned to look in the direction of the voice.

I saw Nagata, better known as Recon, standing there.

"Nagata?" I asked. "What is it?"

"I just wanted to apologize for what I tried to pull in ALO. I get it. I'm sorry and I'll leave you alone now."

He turned and was about to walk away. I couldn't let him.

"Nagata! Wait!"

He turned back to look at me with red cheeks.

"What?"

I stepped closer.

"Please, don't apologize. I'm the one who should be doing that. I was terrible to you. I apologize. _I'm_ sorry."

He was silent, so I had to continue speaking.

"I've been going through stuff in real life lately. Really complicated things that would be too hard to explain. If I read your actions the other day correctly, which I think I did, then I'm not ready for a relationship yet. I'm sorry."

He looked back at me with a hurt expression.

"But it won't always be like that. Maybe one day I'll be ready."

He continued to look at me after that, before he smiled and spoke.

"I think that I can live with that chance, Kirigaya."

I felt my face grow warm now. I stepped forward and gently took his hand.

"Please, call me 'Suguha', Nagata. You don't have to call me by my last name."

"O...Okay." he spoke in a shaking voice.

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

 _April 17_ _th_ _, 2026_

It had been about four months since Asuna had returned to the real world. And everything was back to normal. For the most part, anyway. Sugou was in jail for life after his experiments went public. No surprise there. And school had been in session for a while now. Asuna, Lisbeth, Silica and I all went to school on the same campus.

Speaking of Silica, she was one of the SAO survivors that was experimented on. It feels odd to think that during that entire time, she was gone and one of Sugou's victims. Her rehabilitation took a bit longer, but she did eventually get back to normal. And Asuna finally revealed how Sugou got to her.

Sugou actually had her kidnapped while she was walking home from our last date in late November. I couldn't help but feel guilty. I felt like I had failed as her boyfriend. How could I have been so careless and allow her to walk home by herself? If I had walked her home that night, would Sugou have been able to kidnap her?

Would the disappearances ever have been solved? Just then, I heard the sound of a bell ringing. I looked up as I rubbed my eyes, to see everyone getting out of their seats. I had been so caught up in my thoughts that I had missed the last five minutes of class.

"Looks like that's all for today." Our teacher replied as he got ready to leave himself. "Keep an eye out for homework files twenty five and twenty six. Then be sure to upload your answers by next week."

That was what school was like. Most of, if not all of our work was done digitally. Gone were the days of standard paper and pencil. That probably had something to do with the fact that we had gotten used to a digital system while in SAO. Also, even though Asuna and I were a year apart in age, we managed to end up in one class together. So, that was kind of cool to find out. I got up from my desk and grabbed my bag. I left the room, along with my other classmates.

 _Five Minutes Later_

I left the building on campus that I had been in and was walking to meet Asuna out in one of the courtyards. It was a nice enough spring day for it, anyway. I continued walking through the courtyard and I eventually came to a stop. There she was, in all of her glory. Asuna was sitting on one of the courtyard benches, not noticing me yet. I couldn't help but continue looking at her with a longing gaze. I eventually snapped out of my trance and decided that I should maybe approach her before she caught me staring. I walked over to the bench and now noticing me, she looked up and smiled.

"Hey, you." she said.

I smiled back as I dropped my bag to my left and sat down next to her.

"Hey." I said as I pecked her cheek.

As we smiled at each other, she eventually gave me a weird look.

"What?" I asked.

"You were staring again, weren't you?"

A surprised look came to my face as I shook my head,

"No, I wasn't! I swear!"

She continued to look at me before she sighed.

"If you say so." She replied before she smiled again. "Well, how are you?"

I nodded as I stretched and let out a yawn.

"Good. But tired. And also, hungry. Tired and hungry."

Her smile lessened a bit.

"You're starting to sound like an old man, Kirito."

"Yeah, well, I feel like I've put on a couple years in the last month alone. I _feel_ old and I'm only seventeen. I honestly can't believe that it's been a year and a half since SAO."

"Not quite a year a half yet."

I shrugged.

"Yeah, whatever. Also, I told you not to call me Kirito. Call me Kazuto. It's rude to call people by their avatar name."

"That coming from the guy who still calls his friends by their avatar names, even in real life. And speaking of which, I told you that I'll always call you Kirito. On the account of that's who I knew you as. But now that I think of it, everyone will automatically know who I am, since I never came up with a 'real' avatar name."

I sighed.

"Well, it's not like it's a big deal. Every student on campus is an SAO survivor, so it doesn't matter much. So, my cover's probably blown, too."

She chuckled and went silent after that. After a few seconds of silence, I gently put my hand on top of hers, which surprised her.

"Asuna, it's been quite a while since your rehab ended. So, are you still getting around okay?"

"Mmm-hmm!" she nodded with a smile.

"Good." I said as I returned her nod. "That's good to know."

Suddenly, her cheeks turned a light pink.

"What? What is it?"

"Kirito, um, did you know that this courtyard is in full view of the cafeteria?"

I let out a light gasp as I felt my own cheeks heat up, but I eventually let out a sigh and chuckled.

"Oh, well." I said as I leaned back into the bench and put my hands behind my bed.

"That'll cost you lunch."

I shrugged.

"Sorry. Besides, you're the one who decided to meet here."

I knew that would ruin any argument that she would try to start.

"Alright, alright. Here you go."

I looked over, to see her handing me a sandwich just like the ones she made in SAO. I drew back a breath of disbelief. I would never get used to how good her cooking was (well, it wasn't cooking in this situation, but whatever). Honestly, I loved it.

"Asuna, you are a Goddess." I replied as I took it from her.

She chuckled with a smile as her cheeks turned pink again.

"Keep telling me that."

I bit into the sandwich and began eating my lunch. Silence passed between us for a while and so I spoke after I swallowed the chunk of sandwich that I had been working on.

"Hey, Asuna? How's your father doing?"

She looked back at me with a sad smile.

"He's doing okay. Daddy had to dissolve his company. He's retired now, but he plans on finding a hobby or getting a part time job."

I nodded.

"That's good. I'm glad to hear it."

Shouzou Yuuki was the former CEO of RECT Progress. Sugou Nobuyuki worked for Mr. Yuuki, even though he ran his own division. They still worked together, even after Asuna ended her relationship with Sugou. After the ALO Incident, Mr. Yuuki felt somewhat responsible for the whole thing and so he wanted close the company entirely. I looked up at the sky as I forgot about my sandwich.

 _A that night in the hospital parking lot, Sugou was arrested once his unethical experiments came known to the public. Later during the interrogations, he tried to deny his actions and pin the blame on Akihiko Kayaba, who had been dead for several months. A true psychopath. Once the police interviewed one of his employers, he then confessed to everything. The experiments, the kidnappings and the big one: that ALO was one big experiment in itself, never meant to be a serious gaming experience._

 _As for the SAO survivors? Well, all of them would make a full recovery and most of them had no memories of the experiments. No one suffered any psychological or neurological problems. Most of RCT Progress employees were let out with nothing more than a slap on the wrist, while Sugou's entire private security force, the ones responsible for the kidnappings, were all arrested. And unfortunately, the VRMMO genre has been dealt another fatal blow. The genre had already been on thin ice after the SAO Incident, but the ALO Incident may be the final nail in the coffin._

 _RCT Progress had to be dissolved. Which according to Asuna, is exactly what Mr. Yuuki wanted. Their parent company also suffered a hit. And of course, ALO had to be shut down entirely, which may have been for the best. As for the other five or six VRMMOs that were all in development, they've all been cancelled. Due to negative attention from the media, there most likely wasn't another way out._

"Hey, come to think of it, what happened to the Commander in the end?"

Asuna's question snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Who?" I asked.

"Oh, come on! Heathcliff! Akihiko Kayaba! That guy, or whatever you want to call him!"

"Oh. Um, yeah. Kayaba's dead now. They say it was suicide."

"Suicide?!"

I nodded.

"Yeah. As Aincrad collapsed, he did a high-output scan of his brain. I think that's how he got a copy of his neural mapping into my NerveGear. But after the scan, his mind was fried. Just like the countless others that died while in SAO."

She went quiet and I didn't blame her. Talking about the deaths in SAO left a depressing and negative feeling in the air.

"Was he actually trying to copy his consciousness to the Net?"

"Well, while there's a one in a thousand chance of it working, I know that he could have pulled it off. Hell, I spoke to his consciousness directly on my final day in ALO."

As I sat there, I couldn't help but think about that thing that he had given me that day. The Seed.

"Kirito? Earth to Kirito!"

I looked back up at her.

"About today's meeting with the others..."

That's when I remembered the meetup that we had scheduled today.

"Oh, right. Sorry, I was spacing out!"

She scooted closer to me and rested her head on my shoulder.

"You've been doing that a lot lately. It doesn't matter if you're in the game or in real life. The minute you relax, you space out like a champ!"

We sat there in silence for a few seconds before I spoke again.

"Shouldn't we get a move on?"

She let out a sigh as she continued resting her head on my shoulder.

"No. Let's just stay here for a bit longer."

I sighed myself as I rested the side of my head against hers.

"Okay."

 _Lisbeth/Rika_

 _The Cafeteria_

I stood with my hand on the glass window, squeezing the juice pouch in my other hand with anger at the sight of Kirito and Asuna kissing up to each other.

"Liz... I mean, Rika, seriously! You're driving me crazy!"

I turned to look at my two friends, Silica/Keiko and Sachi sitting at the cafeteria table in front of me.

"Leave me alone!" I complained as I looked back at the window. "He's practically drooling on her! They can't act like that at school, it's _so_ wrong!"

"Spying on them is kinda wrong, too, you know."

I let out a sigh as I fell into my chair across from Keiko and Sachi.

"If I had known that it'd be like this, I wouldn't have let you guys talk me into a month long truce!"

I looked at Sachi.

"Why aren't you upset about this, Sachi? Didn't you like..."

The black-haired girl in question put up her hand.

"Hey, this is your issue. Leave _me_ out of this."

I let out a sigh of defeat.

"Besides, it was your idea." Keiko replied. "Not mine."

I rolled my eyes and decided to change the subject.

"It's gonna be cool to meet everyone today, huh?"

"Yeah, totally!" Sachi replied.

"I can't wait!" Keiko said.

 _Kirito/Kazuto_

 _The Dicey Café – A Couple Hours Later_

Asuna, Suguha and I walked towards Agil's café, while Sugu trailed a bit behind us. I turned my head to look at her from over my shoulder.

"Sugu, I forgot to ask before." I spoke. "Have you met Agil?"

She nodded.

"Yeah. We went hunting a couple times in ALO. His avatar's ginormous!"

I chuckled.

"Yeah, well get ready. He's that big in real life, too! Prepare to have your mind blown!"

She flashed a smile at me, and we continued walking. We eventually reached the door, which had a sign on it, reading: 'closed for private party' and opened it, to see our entire friend group inside, plus a few other acquaintances. Asuna chuckled and waved while I sighed.

"Don't tell me." I said. "We're late, aren't we?"

"Nope!" Rika replied as she approached me. "We gave you a later time so everyone could get here first! It wouldn't be right for the guest of honor to show up before all of his guests do!"

She then grabbed my hand.

"Well, don't just stand there! Come on in!"

She pulled me to box in the back of the room and had me stand on it. She then grabbed a microphone and spoke into it.

"Okay, get ready everyone! Let's get a cheer on three!"

Three seconds passed and then:

"Congratulations on beating ALO, Kirito!"

Afterwards, confetti was blasted into my face and I could sense that there was a banner, saying: 'congratulations' rolling down behind me. I was getting a serious case of déjà vu right now. I let out a grunt as Lisbeth put a glass into my hand, filled with a liquid.

"Cheers, everyone!" she exclaimed as she took a drink from her glass.

Seeing as everyone back to drink from their glasses, I did the same.

"Cheers!" everyone cried in unison.

 _Sometime Later_

Sometime into the party, I was approached by Diavel. We occasionally saw each other after ALO, but it was cool to see that he was here.

"Hey, Diavel. How are you doing?" I asked.

He smiled.

"I'm good. Good as can be expected. What about you? How's school going?"

I nodded.

"It's going alright. I'm getting by."

"That's good to hear."

"Well, I'm going to go to the bar to get a drink. If you'd want to join me, that'd be cool."

"I'll take you up on that!"

The two of us moved to the bar and sat down on two of the vacant stools.

"Bartender," I spoke with a sigh. "Bourbon on the rocks."

A small glass full of the requested drink was immediately slid down to me, while Diavel ordered the same thing. I looked up to see Agil winking at me. I picked up the glass, took a long drink of it and then cringed.

"Come on, Agil! This is Oolong tea! Pour me a real drink!"

"Agil, give me a big boy drink." Someone said.

I turned to my right and grunted to see Klein standing there.

"Seriously, Klein? Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

He took a drink of his 'big boy drink', as he put it, before he answered.

"Alcohol makes the overtime go by faster."

I now noticed that Diavel wasn't complaining about his drink like I was. So, he either didn't care or Agil gave him a 'real drink'.

"Uh oh, chick alert!" Klein replied.

I turned to look at his direction, to see Asuna talking with a group of girls, Rika and Sachi being among them. I think I recognized one of the girls as the lady who ran that church full of children in Aincrad, but as for the rest of them, I was lost.

"Long time, no see." A male voice replied.

I turned to my right, to see that the man I had known as Thinker in SAO had sat down next to us. I smiled as I saw him.

"Hi, Thinker! How've you been?" I asked. "I heard that you and Yulier are married now. I know it's late, but congrats!"

I put up my hand and we clinked our glasses together.

"What he said." Diavel replied. "Congratulations, man."

Thinker nodded at him.

"Thank you. There was a period of adjustment after SAO, but I'm glad to say that everything is back to normal now."

I grinned.

"I'll drink to that! I can say the same thing."

"Well, I am finally fully adjusted back into work mode again."

Klein, like the obnoxious guy that he is, slammed his hands down onto the bar.

"Well, congrats on getting that far! I read the new MMO Today and I have to say, great work!"

Thinker chuckled.

"Yeah, I wish it were better. It could have used a bit more content."

"You'll find something." I said, before I turned to Klein. "Klein, do you mean to tell me that you _still_ haven't settled back into your work life?"

He just shrugged.

"Anyway, with the way MMOs are now, who needs walkthroughs and news?" Thinker spoke once more. "Those things will be irrelevant soon anyway."

I chuckled.

"Yeah, well you know what they say about the universe being born. First there was chaos." I looked up at Agil as I spoke. "By the way, Agil, has the Seed been doing okay?"

"It's doing amazing!" he replied, as he walked over to his laptop, which sat on another section of the bar. "We got fifty mirrors already set up _and_ it's been downloaded a hundred thousand times."

He turned to look at me with a smile.

"And wait till you hear this: It has three hundred big ass servers that are actually running it!"

I felt someone put their hands on my shoulders, but I didn't think anything of it. After I had stayed the night in the hospital with Asuna that night, I took the thing that Kayaba had called 'the Seed' to Agil and asked him to analyze it. It turned out that it was a full-dive MMO that Kayaba had developed. It came in a program package, called 'The World Seed', a stripped down version of the Cardinal system that could run on small servers.

Kayaba had modified the program, that way, anyone with access to an ordinary server could easily download it and use it to create their very own online world! After Agil determined that it was safe to use, I had some thinking to do. I could delete the program and forget that it had ever existed, or I could let it 'sprout', as Kayaba had put it. However, if I had deleted it, then I wouldn't be thinking about it right now, then would I?

Well, even though I hated the VRMMO genre after the ALO Incident, I couldn't deny that the genre still had endless potential for the public. So, I decided to let it grow and care for it in it's early stages, which it was still in. I had Agil to upload it to servers worldwide, that way anyone could download it for free. It turned out, that was exactly what the dying genre needed. And in a way, I saved the genre from dying off.

As for ALfheim Online, all of the data was transferred to a new company that decided to keep it online and running, hopefully this time with planned, new expansions that Sugou would never have thought of doing. But the new ALO wasn't the only thing that was born from the Seed. Everyone from individual gamers to a few hundred small companies were suddenly creating brand new worlds on their very own virtual game servers!

It may have been only three and a half months or so since I had it uploaded, but these new worlds were still appearing, and they showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. And if you ask me, the best part of all this, was the fact that they were all interconnected with each other. It's almost to the point where you can create a character in one world, then transfer it to another, with all its skills intact!

I looked up at Agil.

"Hey, has anything changed for tonight's after party?" I asked.

"Nope. We're still on for eleven! We're meeting up in Yggdrasil City!" he said.

"That's great! Um, is it still ready?"

He nodded with a wink, but said nothing. I let out a sigh of relief as I sat back with a smile on my face.

 _Suguha/Leafa_

 _ALfheim, Cait Sith Territory – Above the Capital City, Freelia – 10:50 P.M._

I flew in the skies of the New ALfheim, all by myself. In this new version of ALO, players now had unlimited flight, except for in dungeons, so I was trying to push myself to my limits. I could see the moon above me, and I pushed myself to fly even faster. Just when I thought I would touch it; my flight came a stop and I was greeted with a system warning.

 _Warning: Altitude Limit,_ I read as I began to fall.

I just let it happen. I made no effort in recovering from my fall. I felt myself pass through the cloud layer, back towards the ground and that's when I felt someone catch me. I let out a gasp of shock and opened my eyes, to see Kazuto/Kirito holding me.

"You know, I was afraid that you'd fly up too high." He said with a smile. "It's almost eleven, so I came to get you."

I smiled back at him after a few seconds.

"Oh, okay. Thanks." I said as he let me down to begin hovering again.

I flew a small distance away from him and looked down.

"Hey, Kaz... Kirito, you know how ALO is now being ran by a different company and you can use your old SAO avatar?"

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Well, everyone is using their old avatars. So, why aren't you?"

"Hmm. I guess because in that world, the old Kirito's purpose has ended."

I turned to look at him with surprise. I eventually smiled again.

"Yeah, I guess so. So, I guess that I, Leafa the Sylph, was the first to meet Kirito the Spriggan and travel with him to The World Tree. That's pretty cool."

 _Kazuto/Kirito_

I resisted the urge to tell her that it was Klein the Salamander who had met Kirito the Spriggan first. Suddenly, Leafa flew over to me.

"Hey, Kirito!" she replied as she took my hands. "Dance with me!"

"Huh?" I asked with surprise.

"Dance! It's an advanced technique that I just mastered. You just hover and slowly spin on your X-axis."

"Uh, okay."

I followed her instructions and slowly spun on my X-axis for about half a minute.

"Yeah, that's it!" she said. "You're doing great!"

She then took out a small jar of some kind, popped it open and a nice music began to play. It floated into the air and came to a stop above us as we continued dancing. We danced in silence for a while, before I spoke.

"Hey, Sugu?" I asked, not calling her by her avatar name.

She didn't seem offended by it.

"Yeah, big brother?"

"I'm sorry about that night back in December. You know, before Asuna had been freed?"

It may be odd, but until now, neither of us had brought it up. So, this seemed as good a time as any. She shook her head.

"Don't apologize. I should be apologizing. I overreacted that night. I had no right acting the way I did."

I shook my head this time.

"No, that's not what I'm talking about that. I don't care about that anymore. You were right about what you asked me that night. About me always avoiding you. Even after SAO, even though I tried to do the exact opposite, I still ended up avoiding you for the most part. I should have tried harder."

She looked at me for a few seconds, before she spoke again.

"No, it's okay. After a while, I actually understood your position. I can't imagine what I'd do if I discovered that my Mom and Dad, your Aunt and Uncle, weren't really my parents. Now, I could of see your actions to be somewhat understandable. But it means a lot to hear you say that now."

"Sugu, I meant what I said in that letter that day. You _are_ important to me. To me, you aren't my cousin. You're my sister, regardless of what my birth certificate says. You have always been my little sister. And you always will be."

Her cheeks turned light red after that, but she eventually hugged me, and our dance momentarily stopped. Eventually, she pulled away and our dance began again.

"Hey, Kazuto?" she asked. "Have you checked out the Internet recently?"

I shook my head.

"No. What's going on there that's so interesting?"

"Oh, nothing in particular. It's just the fans of your manga. After the ALO Incident, their clamoring for a sequel or another manga from you."

I chuckled.

"I'm flattered. But if we're being honest, it's not my manga. It's _our_ manga. You deserve just as much credit as I do. Without your illustrations, I couldn't have brought the world of SAO to life through pages."

Her cheeks turned red again.

"That's really nice of you to say. So, what do you say? Do you want to do another one?"

I thought about it for a few seconds.

"Actually, no. I don't plan on writing a sequel or another manga."

A look of surprise came to her eyes.

"What? Why?"

"Because, that story is personal to Asuna. I don't think that I can do that to her. Besides, I feel like the concept of a damsel in distress is overdone and even a cliché in popular culture. I wouldn't even know where to begin."

"Well, wasn't SAO personal in a way? To the families of the deceased? Did you let that stop you?"

"Well, with all due respect to them, I think the story of SAO had to be told, as it happened."

She continued to look at me.

"I got it!" she eventually said.

"You got what?"

"I have an idea! Instead of Asuna being held against her will, what if it was _you_ who was being held?"

I wrinkled my nose.

"Me? Why does it have to be me?"

"Think about it. Couldn't you see Sugou having you kidnapped and tortured within ALO as punishment as stealing Asuna from him? Or so he believes, anyway?"

I had to admit. That was pretty intriguing.

"You know what? That has some real merit to it, Suguha."

"Will you at least think it over?"

I nodded.

"I will. I promise."

We were eventually interrupted, by the sound of several wings flapping in the distance.

"Come on." I said as I took her hand. "We should get going to Ygg City!"

I grabbed her hand as she tried to protest, and we burst away from the skyline that we had danced by. Eventually, we came to a stop in front of the Tree. I looked up at the sky, as I heard the chime of a bell.

"It's coming, now." I said. "It'll be here any second now!"

"What?" she asked as she looked around. "What is it?"

I stared up at the sky for a few more seconds.

"Not yet, not yet... Okay, now!"

That's when the silhouette of something massive began to move in front of the moon. She let out a gasp next to me.

"No way! Is that...?"

"Yep, it's Aincrad!" I replied as it slowly began coming to stop in front of the moon. "Or, as it will be called: 'New Aincrad'! A world where death is no longer a threat to players!"

As it stopped, it began to shine bright like the setting sun.

"That's the floating castle. Redesigned floor by floor and adapted for gameplay within ALO!"

"How? I mean, what's it doing here?!"

"Because, so many people never got to experience the original Aincrad. And this version, is close enough to the original. And also, because this time, we're going to beat it. All of us, floor-by-floor. All the way until Floor One Hundred."

I patted Leafa on the head.

"Sugu, I went ahead and reset all of my stats. So, I'm a lot weaker now. I want to conquer Aincrad floor-by-floor, but as a level one like I was two years ago. I want to do it the right way. Even though I'll have to learn the strategies and monster algorithms all over again, I'll have you guys to help. And I have no doubt that we'll beat that castle."

She stared back at me, before smiling. And she nodded. We stood there, with my hand on her head, before we were interrupted.

"Hey, Kirito!" a male voice exclaimed. "You're late again, as usual!"

We turned to look at the mass of players that were approaching. At the forefront, was Klein as Salamander, Agil as a Gnome, Lisbeth as a Leprechaun, Silica as a Cait Sith, accompanied with Pina the Feather Dragon, Sachi as a Spriggan and Asuna, who now played as an Undine. Among them, I noticed Diavel (who still played as an Undine), Thinker and Yulier, Sasha (I finally remembered her name!), Lady Sakuya and Alicia Rue, accompanied by Sylphs and Cait Siths respectively, General Eugene and his Salamanders and Recon (or Nagata, Suguha's friend from real life).

"We're gonna leave you in the dust!" he exclaimed again.

"Go on ahead! We'll catch up with you guys!"

They flew past us.

"See you there!" Agil exclaimed.

"Come on!" Lisbeth exclaimed.

"Hurry!" Silica exclaimed.

Leafa and I looked at each other, smiled and nodded at each other. Eventually, Asuna flew over to us and came to a stop.

"Come on, you two!" she exclaimed as she took our hands in hers. "We're gonna miss the grand opening!"

And so, the three of us, hand in hand, flew onward, with nothing but the future ahead of us.

The End

 _ **Review Responses**_

 _SwordY05hi (Chapter 28): I'm sorry for what you went through on the last two chapters. Even if those fools did those things to you, I still like this story a lot. As a fellow writer, you are doing a wonderful story. You still have me enjoying all the way. That includes the squeals too. Go my awesome go. Also Merry Christmas and Happy New Years too. Go awesome writer, go._

Well, I appreciate your kind words. Even though I myself can no longer look at The Death Game as my crown achievement, I appreciate the things that you say. I'm glad that you like this story. That makes me a bit happier. Um, by squeals, did you by any chance mean "sequels"? I kinda doubt you did, but who knows? Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you, too. Thanks for the review, as always.

 _Naruto Sakura Uzumaki (Chapter 28): You definitely did well in painting how psychotic Noboyuki Sugou in this version. I already thought of him as psychotic and a sore loser in canon, and your version really improved showing his twisted personality. I still despise Sugou, because he has no care for humanity, ethics, or sympathy. He is worse than even PoH with his personality and twisted thoughts involving moral and human ethics._

 _Now it makes sense about the picture that Kirito received in the mail IRL in the beginning of this arc in your version of SAO. I was wondering about that for a while, but I didn't want to ask in the case of spoilers. I am glad that you are giving this story a chance of (eventually and hopefully) being continued after next chapter. Also, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!_

Thanks, Naruto. I'm glad you thought that I did well of painting the picture of Sugou's insanity. What did you think of how unhealthy and underweight he was IRL? Um, about Kirito and Asuna's reunion (I was hoping that people would notice this), I had them use the only two lines of English lyrics from Aincrad's intro (as far as I know, anyway).

Asuna says one and Kirito says the other. Anyone like that? Or am I the only one who liked that thought? Yeah, about this story getting adapted again, I'll get to that in a little bit. So, thank you for being the reader that gave the most in-depth reviews on this story, it means a lot to. So, thanks for the review as always and happy 2020!

 _Author's Note:_

* And so, my adaptation of SAO: Season One is finally complete! I hope those of you that enjoyed the story enjoyed the finale! Before we get into the details about Part II, I have something I want to say something.

* I have two thank yous that I want to say. So, first, obviously, I want to say thank you to those who have always supported this story. The fact that you've stuck around this long, means the world to me.

* But most of all, I want to say thank you to all the haters. Some of you may question my decision in doing this. If there are any readers who hate my story and you read this far, I owe you a _big_ thank you. The fact that some of you readers who presumably hates my story, yet have read this far, it just blows my mind. I just wanted to thank the haters for sticking around (even though they didn't have to). I think that's more important than thanking my supporters, but maybe no one agrees. And if that's the case, then it's fine.

* Okay, now onto some details on this chapter, as well as all the details that I can give on the next adaptation. First of all, I had a lot more that I wanted to do with this chapter, but I had to cut a good amount of it due to time constraints. Also, I did actually have a "post credits scene" in mind, similar to what I did prior to Fairy Dance (when I dropped Sugou's name), to lay the ground work for the Phantom Bullet arc.

* Unfortunately, seeing as my adaptation of SAO II may never see the light of day, I had to cut the post credit scene. I didn't want to leave this story on a cliffhanger. However, if SAO II ends up happening (more on that later) I will go back and edit in the additional scene and cut the final The End subtitle. That's all on this chapter that I wanted to talk about. So, now onto SAO II.

* I think I have a lot more to talk about on SAO II. First, the way I would have gone about it. One, this story would have ended either way. I would have picked up SAO II, in a new separate story. My reasoning for that is for the longest time, on Netflix, SAO I and II were separate properties. It wasn't until over halfway into 2019 that they finally recognized SAO I and II as the same series.

* Seeing as that is now the case, I didn't have to do it that way anymore, but I still would have. Because I feel like launching a new story or "series" would have been a unique method to go about it. And I want to mention now, that the planned name I had ready to go was: "The Fatal Scythe". I decided to do this as a reference to the boss from SAO, as well as the fact that in SAO II, death is a big story element, maybe even more so than SAO I. And besides, I didn't want to call it: "The Death Game II" or something tacky like that.

* Now, for a little details into the plot (no spoilers in case it still happens). One reason why I decided to cancel "The Fatal Scythe", is because of how radical the ideas were compared to The Death Game. They were so radical, that I considered the fact that "The Fatal Scythe" may ruin SAO even more than my previous iteration did. I know many of you claim that I didn't ruin SAO, but that's just my thought process.

* As for a couple of these "radical ideas", they ranged from moving the Phantom Bullet arc to a different season to omitting a plot point all together, just because I didn't see the relevance of having it in this version, because of how The Death Game came out. That's all I'm willing to reveal. Hopefully it doesn't sound cringeworthy. But if anyone does think that it is cringe, it's fine. I don't think I care anymore.

* Now, for the final thing: What can _you_ , as a reader, do to get SAO II or "The Fatal Scythe"? Well, here's what you can do for me. If my readers want another adaptation, I need at least ten people to tell me that they want another adaptation It can be either through reviews or private messages to me. That may seem like an absurdly small number, but I literally don't think that there are even five readers who care about this story.

* If there are ten, or way more than that, fine. That's cool. That's great even! It'd give me a boost in self esteem that I lost when this story took a deep dive. If the story does happen, then here's what I'll do. I will go back, cut out everything I mentioned and add that one scene, and put in a "next chapter" entry. So, that's all I got.

* If the story doesn't happen, I'll continue responding to reviews to this story as long as I shall get them. That's sort of a way to give back to the readers who still bother reading this. I know that I said this chapter would release on New Year's Eve and it's actually New Year's Day now. But I still think it counts. This will be released early, early, early on New Year's Day anyway.

* Like I said, thanks to all those who read this. I hope you all enjoyed this extra long finale! And without anything else to say, thanks for sticking around this long and I'll catch you on the flipside!


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